Hudson Valley County Sees Spike In Gonorrhea STD

BREWSTER, NY — Sexually transmitted diseases — gonorrhea in particular — are spiking in Putnam County and across America, health officials warn. There were 27 cases of gonorrhea last year — an increase of nearly 60 percent from a year earlier, county health officials said in a release this week.

Chlamydia and syphilis numbers remained relatively stable, which was good news after syphilis dramatically increased by 125 percent in 2016.

That follows elevated levels of syphilis cases across the U.S. in 2015 — the highest the country had seen in two decades. These increases are concerning not only to public health officials locally, but nationwide as well.

April is National STD Awareness Month, so county health officials are working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other groups to get out a simple message: “Treat Me Right.”

The theme highlights the importance of a having a trusting patient/provider relationship, both for receiving the best care and providing it.

“The doctor/patient rapport is a key ingredient to all successful medical care and something physicians value when practicing medicine,” Interim Health Commissioner Michael Nesheiwat, M.D., said in the release “The resurgence of sexually transmitted diseases is quite serious. If untreated, these diseases can cause severe health problems. The health department is spearheading efforts and partnering with local physicians to increase appropriate testing. In this way we can stem this trend.”

Patients should try to learn as much as they can about STDs, as well as how to protect themselves. Providers should build trust by listening to patients in such a way they feel "heard and respected," the release said.

Since 2015, there have been more than 1.5 million cases of chlamydia in the U.S., the most common STD. Gonorrhea is the second most common art nearly half a million and syphilis ranked third during that period, affecting roughly 27,000 people.

The only sure way to know if someone has an STD is to get tested.

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