STD rates surge in Alachua County, stay same on campus

As sexually transmitted diseases increased to record levels across the U.S. in 2015, Alachua County was no exception.

Following a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention annual STD surveillance report, which was released Oct. 19, a spokesman for the Florida Department of Health released the county’s updated numbers for cases of gonorrhea, chlamydia and infectious syphilis, the most common STDs in the U.S.

Last year, the county saw the highest single-year rate of these STDs in the past 20 years, according to FDOH figures released Oct. 26. There was an increase of 434 cases from 2014 to 2015.

Nationwide, reported cases of primary and secondary syphilis rose by approximately 19 percent, gonorrhea cases rose by 13 percent and chlamydia cases rose by 6 percent from 2014, the CDC reported.

Dr. Guy Nicolette, the director of the UF Student Health Care Center, said the center has not seen a significant increase in any specific STD or in the total number of diagnosed students this year.

The health care center offers students that need screenings an inexpensive solution, Nicolette said.

“We are partnered with the Alachua County Health Department to provide extremely low-cost, sometimes free, (STD) screenings, available to any student by appointment in our Get Yourself Tested Clinic,” he said.

Brad Dalton, the deputy press secretary for the FDOH communications office, said the state is very involved in addressing the surging numbers.

“More people need to know their status,” he said. “If you are sexually active, you should be taking proper precautions, but regardless, you should be getting tested regularly.”