Rates of sexually transmitted infections dropped here in 2012, but St. Louis still has the second-highest rates of chlamydia and gonorrhea, according to the Center for Disease Control.
The center released a report Wednesday with the 2012 STD rates in the United States. Only Philadelphia County had higher rates of chlamydia infection than St. Louis, compared to U.S. counties and independent cities, and Montgomery County, Alabama, beat us to the No. 1 spot for highest gonorrhea rates.
Here's how the numbers break down:
In the St. Louis metropolitan area, patients reported 14,905 new cases of chlamydia in 2012, compared to 15,556 in 2011. Chlamydia rates haven't been this low in the Lou since 2008.
In 2012, 4,811 in the St. Louis metro area reported new cases of gonorrhea, compared to 5,017 cases in 2011.
Syphilis rates dipped as well, dropping from 281 cases in the St. Louis metro area in 2012 to 271 in 2011.
See also: Got Clap? St. Louisans Do. Chlamydia, Too!
St. Louis has ranked in the top five cities for chlamydia, the most common sexually transmitted infection, since 2000. In 2006 and 2007, the Lou was the leader in new cases, and we've been stuck at No. 2 since 2009.
Things aren't much better when it comes to the clap. River City jumped to No. 3 from No. 12 in gonorrhea rates in 2009.
Follow Lindsay Toler on Twitter at @StLouisLindsay. E-mail the author at [email protected].
