Louisiana ranked No. 2 in US for STI rate, No. 1 for chlamidyia rate

LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) – New research shows that sexually transmitted infections are on the rise in Louisiana.

The CDC ranks Louisiana seventh in the U.S. for cases of congenital syphilis, number three for gonorrhea and No. 1 for chlamydia cases.

Overall, the Bayou State sits at No. 2 for the highest STI rate in the country.

To put it in perspective, per 100,000 people, more than 1,200 have been diagnosed with one or more sexually transmitted infections.

“At Access, we see gonorrhea, chlamydia testing every single day. It’s actually way more frequent than most people actually realize,” Access Urgent Care Nurse Practitioner Samantha Marceaux said.

Marceaux and her team have treated thousands of patients for these infections.

“Two to five per day, we’re open seven days a week. I mean, it’s a pretty significant number, especially for how small Southwest Louisiana is,” Marceaux said.

Marceaux believes one of the main reasons Louisiana has continued to climb the ranks is due to the lack of education like in other states such as Vermont, which has the lowest rate of STIs.

“I think you know some people just truly understand STDs. I think we take maybe the lack of education for granted. I think, you know, that education should start in school-age kids because kids are having sex at a very young age right now, and I don’t think they’re mature enough to do so,” Marceaux said.

Some of the symptoms aligned with these infections are visible or physical, but that’s not always the case.

“You can be completely asymptomatic and not necessarily know that you have it,” Marceaux said.

Medical professionals said don’t let the stigma around these issues prevent you from treating them.

“You can get very serious, very serious infections, you know, women or men, from sexually transmitted diseases, so it’s definitely something that you want to treat as soon as you have those initial symptoms or as soon as you know about the exposure,” Marceaux said.

These infections are mostly preventable with the appropriate measures. Untreated STIs can lead to complications that may be deadly.

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