2008 Woodie Awards
Cases of STDs rise in Central
Health Center sees increase in testing
Whitney Hamrick
Issue date: 8/13/07 Section: News
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The number of reported sexually transmitted diseases in Central Florida rose 14.1 percent from 1995 to 2005, according to data from the Florida Department of Health.
Health officials are uncertain as to whether the increase is due to more infections or if more people are getting tested.
Karen Yerkes, advanced registered nurse practitioner and coordinator for the Women's Health Clinic at UCF, said that since March and throughout the summer, more people have been coming in for testing. "The numbers may be up because more people are getting tested," Yerkes said.
In the 2006-2007 academic year, Health Services offered chlamydia and gonorrhea testing on campus. Of the 1,807 men and women tested, 6 percent tested positive for either disease.
Last spring, Health Services offered free HIV testing. Two students tested positive.
According to the Center for Disease Control, about half of new reported cases of STD infections in the U.S. occur within people between the ages of 15 to 24.
"People think they should be tested only if they have symptoms," Yerkes said. But some people may be infected with an STD without having symptoms.
"We call [chlamydia] the silent infection because it tends to be a long time before a person would be having signs of infection. They can carry it for a long time," Yerkes said.
Not all students decide to get tested, said Peter Mastroianni, coordinator of Education and Training for UCF Health Services. One of the reasons for this is the cost of testing.
"They're not cheap," Mastroianni said. "In fact, we've tried to bargain with lab companies to get a cheaper price for a range of tests, and it's just not in their advantage to do so. Some [students] are checked through a blood test, some are checked through a urine test, some are checked by just observation of symptoms. So it's not as easy to diagnose everything, which is one of the problems."
At the Health Center, chlamydia and gonorrhea can be tested at the same time through a urine sample or blood culture, costing $40 with results ready the next day.
Health officials are uncertain as to whether the increase is due to more infections or if more people are getting tested.
Karen Yerkes, advanced registered nurse practitioner and coordinator for the Women's Health Clinic at UCF, said that since March and throughout the summer, more people have been coming in for testing. "The numbers may be up because more people are getting tested," Yerkes said.
In the 2006-2007 academic year, Health Services offered chlamydia and gonorrhea testing on campus. Of the 1,807 men and women tested, 6 percent tested positive for either disease.
Last spring, Health Services offered free HIV testing. Two students tested positive.
According to the Center for Disease Control, about half of new reported cases of STD infections in the U.S. occur within people between the ages of 15 to 24.
"People think they should be tested only if they have symptoms," Yerkes said. But some people may be infected with an STD without having symptoms.
"We call [chlamydia] the silent infection because it tends to be a long time before a person would be having signs of infection. They can carry it for a long time," Yerkes said.
Not all students decide to get tested, said Peter Mastroianni, coordinator of Education and Training for UCF Health Services. One of the reasons for this is the cost of testing.
"They're not cheap," Mastroianni said. "In fact, we've tried to bargain with lab companies to get a cheaper price for a range of tests, and it's just not in their advantage to do so. Some [students] are checked through a blood test, some are checked through a urine test, some are checked by just observation of symptoms. So it's not as easy to diagnose everything, which is one of the problems."
At the Health Center, chlamydia and gonorrhea can be tested at the same time through a urine sample or blood culture, costing $40 with results ready the next day.