Decadent Soceity of the World's Most Powerful Nation - Study finds 1 in 4 US teens has a STD
Muhammad Javed Iqbal
By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer
http://www.huffingt onpost.com/ huff-wires/ 20080311/ teen-stds/
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At least one in four teenage American girls has a sexually transmitted
disease, suggests a first-of-its- kind federal study that startled
some adolescent-health experts.
Some doctors said the numbers might be a reflection of both abstinence-
only sex education and teens' own sense of invulnerabilty. Because
some sexually transmitted infections can cause infertility and cancer,
U.S. health officials called for better screening, vaccination and
prevention.
Only about half of the girls in the study acknowledged having sex.
Some teens define sex as only intercourse, yet other types of intimate
behavior including oral sex can spread some diseases.
Among those who admitted having sex, the rate was even more disturbing
- 40 percent had an STD.
"This is pretty shocking," said Dr. Elizabeth Alderman, an adolescent
medicine specialist at Montefiore Medical Center's Children's Hospital
in New York.
"To talk about abstinence is not a bad thing," but teen girls - and
boys too - need to be informed about how to protect themselves if they
do have sex, Alderman said.
The overall STD rate among the 838 girls in the study was 26 percent,
which translates to more than 3 million girls nationwide, researchers
with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found. They
released the results Tuesday at an STD prevention conference in
Chicago.
"Those numbers are certainly alarming," said sex education expert Nora
Gelperin, who works with a teen-written Web site called sexetc.org.
She said they reflect "the sad state of sex education in our country."
"Sexuality is still a very taboo subject in our society," she said.
"Teens tell us that they can't make decisions in the dark and that
adults aren't properly preparing them to make responsible decisions."
Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of
America, said the study shows that "the national policy of promoting
abstinence-only programs is a $1.5 billion failure, and teenage girls
are paying the real price."
Similar claims were made last year when the government announced the
teen birth rate rose between 2005 and 2006, the first increase in 15
years.
The new study by CDC researcher Dr. Sara Forhan relied on slightly
older data. It is an analysis of nationally representative records on
girls ages 14 to 19 who participated in a 2003-04 government health
survey.
The teens were tested for four infections: human papillomavirus, or
HPV, which can cause cervical cancer and affected 18 percent of girls
studied; chlamydia, which affected 4 percent; trichomoniasis, 2.5
percent; and genital herpes, 2 percent.
Dr. John Douglas, director of the CDC's division of STD prevention,
said the results are the first to examine the combined national
prevalence of common sexually transmitted diseases among adolescent
girls. He said the data, now a few years old, likely reflect current
prevalence rates.
Disease rates were significantly higher among black girls - nearly
half had at least one STD, versus 20 percent among both whites and
Mexican-Americans.
HPV, the cancer-causing virus, can also cause genital warts but often
has no symptoms. A vaccine targeting several HPV strains recently
became available, but Douglas said it probably hasn't yet had much
impact on HPV prevalence rates in teen girls.
The CDC recommends the three-dose HPV vaccine for girls ages 11-12 and
catch-up shots for ages 13-26.
Chlamydia, which often has no symptoms but can lead to infertility,
can be treated with antibiotics. The CDC recommends annual chlamydia
screening for all sexually active women under age 25. Trichomoniasis,
also treatable with antibiotics, can cause abnormal discharge and
painful urination. Genital herpes can cause blisters but often has no
symptoms. It's not curable but medicine can help.
The CDC's Dr. Kevin Fenton said given the dangers of some STDs,
"screening, vaccination and other prevention strategies for sexually
active women are among our highest public health priorities."
Douglas said screening tests are underused in part because many teens
don't think they're at risk, but also, some doctors mistakenly think:
"Sexually transmitted diseases don't happen to the kinds of patients I
see."
Teens need to hear the dual message that STDs can be prevented by
abstinence and condoms, said Dr. Ellen Kruger, an obstetrician-
gynecologist at Ochsner Medical Center in New Orleans.
"You've got to hammer at them," with appropriate information at each
stage of teen development to make sure it sinks in, she said.
She said there are a lot of myths out there, too - many sexually
active teens think the withdrawal method will protect them, or that
douching with Coca-Cola will kill STD germs.
Dr. Margaret Blythe, an adolescent medicine specialist at Indiana
University School of Medicine, said some doctors hesitate to discuss
STDs with teen patients or offer screening because of confidentiality
concerns, knowing parents would have to be told of the results.
Blythe, who heads an American Academy of Pediatrics committee on
adolescence, noted that the academy supports confidential teen
screening.
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Satish Kumar
wrote:
> Decadent Soceity of the World's Most Powerful Nation - Study
> finds 1 in 4 US teens has a STD
That is indeed a serious concern for terrorist supporters like
Muhammad Javed Zball (nee Ekball) who is a native of Pakistan, the
land of the pure.
US drones are beating the shit out of Taliban and Al Qaeda terrorists
in Pakistan right now. What if the US drones are infected with STD?
When the Hellfires fired by the drones penetrate the arseholes of
Taliban and Al Qaeda leaders, won't they get infected with STD as
well?
And then when these Taliban and Al Qaeda martyrs enter Paradise won't
they spread STD amongst the 72 Houris and the 28 pearl like boys as
well?
This is a grave crisis, and understandably, Muhammad Javed Zball (nee
Ekball) is greatly worried.
> By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer
>
> http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ huff-wires/ 20080311/ teen-stds/
> http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ 2008/03/11/ study-finds- 1-in-4-us-