Rural gonorrhea in the southeastern United States: a neglected epidemic?

James C Thomas; Victor J Schoenbach; Debra H Weiner; Edith A Parker; Jo Anne Earp

doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008738

Back

Rural gonorrhea in the southeastern United States: a neglected epidemic?

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Rural gonorrhea in the southeastern United States: a neglected epidemic?

James C Thomas, Victor J Schoenbach, Debra H Weiner, Edith A Parker and Jo Anne Earp

American journal of epidemiology, Vol.143(3), pp.269-277

02/01/1996

DOI: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008738

PMID: 8561161

Files and links (1)

url

https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008738View

Published (Version of record) Open Access

Abstract

Some rural counties in the southeastern United States are experiencing high rates of gonorrhea; however, existing knowledge of epidemiologic patterns of gonorrhea within communities is from urban areas. This paper describes the epidemiology of gonorrhea within a rural county of North Carolina and compares it with the patterns described for large cities. Data include gonorrhea reports from private physicians and the county health department from August 11, 1992, to August 10, 1993, and ethnographic interviews. The rate among males (1,602 cases per 100,000 person-years) was twice that among females. The risk of reinfection within 6 months of an initial infection (12.9%) was high compared with risks in urban settings. Although case numbers did not cluster by geographical area as described for some cities, case rates did. Factors favoring transmission in rural communities include greater poverty and fewer health care resources than in urban settings, the exchange of sex for crack cocaine, and a lack of anonymity that may cause some people to avoid seeking treatment or acknowledging risky sexual behaviors in a clinical setting. Addressing high rural rates will entail improving access to care, taking extra measures to ensure confidentiality, and dispelling the myth that high rates are limited to cities.

Recurrence

Age Distribution

Humans

Middle Aged

Male

Urban Population

Incidence

Cephalosporins - therapeutic use

Ethnic Groups

Disease Outbreaks

Adult

Female

Gonorrhea - epidemiology

North Carolina - epidemiology

Rural Population - statistics & numerical data

Risk Factors

Gonorrhea - drug therapy

Morbidity

Neisseria gonorrhoeae - isolation & purification

Ceftriaxone - therapeutic use

Cervix Uteri - microbiology

Adolescent

Sex Distribution

Aged

Urethra - microbiology

Details

Title: Subtitle: Rural gonorrhea in the southeastern United States: a neglected epidemic?
Creators: James C Thomas - Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill 27599-7400, USA
Victor J Schoenbach
Debra H Weiner
Edith A Parker
Jo Anne Earp
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: American journal of epidemiology, Vol.143(3), pp.269-277
DOI: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a008738
PMID: 8561161
NLM abbreviation: Am J Epidemiol
ISSN: 0002-9262
eISSN: 1476-6256
Publisher: United States
Grant note: U01-AI31496 / NIAID NIH HHS
Language: English
Date published: 02/01/1996
Academic Unit: Public Health Administration; Injury Prevention Research Center; Public Policy Center (Archive); Community and Behavioral Health
Record Identifier: 9984063115302771

Metrics

20 Record Views

47 Times Cited - Web of Science