STD Statistics by Age: Analyzing the “Big 3”

STD Statistics by Age: Analyzing the “Big 3”

Professionals in the medical field have long lamented the inability to accurately measure the prevalence of STDs within the population. One big stumbling block to arriving at accurate STD statistics is the fact that many people who have STDs don’t even know it. What’s more, you can’t tell if someone has an STD just by looking at them. Still, the statistics we do have available to us tell a story of their own. And we can learn a good deal about the nature of STDs by examining who is most susceptible to contracting them. With that in mind, today we’re going to focus on STD statistics by age groups, specifically in regard to the “big three” STDs –– gonorrhea, chlamydia, and syphilis.  

Gonorrhea, Chlamydia, and Syphilis: Common Traits

It’s reasonable to question why we’ve decided to focus on gonorrhea, chlamydia, and syphilis in our statistical breakdown. The first, and biggest reason, is that these three are extremely common –– in fact chlamydia is often reported as the most common curable STD in the USA. Furthermore, all three share a number of traits: they’re all bacterial, widespread, exhibit similar symptoms, and are transmitted in similar ways.

Gonorrhea

Firstly, gonorrhea is nearly as common among women as it is within the male population. According to the CDC over 130,000 men between the ages of 20-29 were diagnosed with gonorrhea in 2016 –– the most for any age bracket. However, it is worth noting that the rate of teenage gonorrhea was significantly higher among women.

Chlamydia

Chlamydia –– through common in both men and women –– is decidedly more prevalent among women. Indeed, in four of the previous five years over a million women have been diagnosed with chlamydia. Men, meanwhile, average between 400,000 and 500,000 new cases of chlamydia per year. (Note: the most recent available data from the CDC runs from 2012–2016.) Again, both women and men were most susceptible to picking up chlamydia between the ages of 20-24, though it must be said that there are also a substantial number of cases of women under the age of 20 contracting chlamydia.

Syphilis

On the flip side, men are almost ten times more likely to be diagnosed with syphilis than their female counterparts. Similarly through, infections most frequently occur between the ages of 20-29. However, when compared to gonorrhea and chlamydia, syphilis affects significantly fewer people.

STDs: 45 and Up

Though young people are still most at-risk for contracting STDs, there are some worrying trends to watch for adults over the age of 45. Indeed, STD rates within that age group rose around 20 percent from 2015 to 2016, and this current report was a continuation of a worrying trend. The truth is, anyone can get an STD at any time in their life; there’s no such thing as being “too old,” for STDs.