Prevention Matters

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued updated Sexually Transmitted Diseases Treatment Guidelines—2010. The guidelines appear in the December 17, 2010 issue of Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) Recommendations and Reports.

The Guidelines, which were previously issued in 2006, are based on newly available evidence and serve as a source of clinical guidance and advise health care providers on the most effective treatment regimens, screening procedures, and prevention and vaccination strategies for STDs. The new guidelines include expanded STD prevention recommendations, including HPV vaccination; revised guidance on the diagnostic evaluation and management of syphilis; revised gonorrhea treatment regimens; and other topics.

Over 19 million cases of STDs occur in the United States each year, with a disproportionate share among young people and racial and ethnic minority populations. The estimated annual direct medical costs of treating STDs and their sequelae are $16.4 billion. Left untreated, STDs can cause serious health problems ranging from infertility to increased risk of HIV infection. Partnership for Prevention is working through the National Chlamydia Coalition (NCC) to address the continued high burden of chlamydia infection, especially among women age 25 and under. For more information on the NCC, visit www.prevent.org/ncc.

The Guidelines are available at www.cdc.gov/std/treatment/2010/. For more information, contact 800-CDC-INFO (800-232-4636) or e-mail cdcinfo@cdc.gov.


Susan K. Maloney, MHS
Managing Senior Fellow and Senior Program Officer