Every year, the Center for Disease Control observes April month to bring awareness to the public about the health risks of sexually transmitted diseases in the US.
STDs have become a pretty large problem in the United States with an estimated 19 million new cases of infection every year resulting in direct costs of over 16 billion dollars. About half of the people with new infections every year are uninsured adolescents between the ages of 15 to 24. Some of these infections can be quite dangerous such as Chlamydia and Gonorrhea which consisted of around 1.5 million cases in 2009 alone. Both of these infections can often show little to no symptoms and if left untreated can cause infertility in both men and women. Another very common STD in the US is HPV or the human papillomavirus the leading cause of cervical cancer as well as others. The greatest tools that the health community has at it’s disposal to slow the transmission and spread of these diseases is knowledge. People need to be aware of the dangers associated with these diseases and how to protect themselves properly as well as get tested yearly if their sexually active. That’s why this year many organizations have committed to spreading the word about STD Awareness Month and how and where to get tested. Your STD Help working with clinics across the country has set up an informative page here to learn more about the observance and find a testing facility in your area as well as MTV who set up a page called GYT to help you learn more about STDs and find clinics near you to get tested.