As our province continues to enjoy all the benefits of a strong economy, we see an increase in the number of people moving to, and living in Alberta. It is important to recognize that a booming city comes with another kind of boom that remains silent and often unspoken by those touting the benefits of economic prowess. That being the rapidly rising rate of newly diagnosed Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI’s) or STD’s.
In the province of Alberta, the rates of newly diagnosed infections of Syphilis, Gonorrhea and Chlamydia have increased at almost twice the usual rate between the years of 2004 and 2007; HIV infections are also on the increase but at a lower rate. It is my belief that this lower rate of new HIV infections has more to do with people not being tested.
I have had people tell me they do not believe they are at risk of contracting HIV for a number of classic reasons, or simply afraid of getting a positive result if they do get tested. It is unfortunate that stigma and fear continue to hinder people’s willingness to get tested for HIV. It is also important to know that an HIV test must be specifically requested when getting tested for STI’s in Alberta.
Although I know an article can get boring with numbers and stats here we go just to show that it is really happening in our province and we need to be informed and aware.
The range in the ages of persons becoming infected with one (or more) of these STI’s is from under 15 to over 60. The rate of new HIV infections has increased between 2006 and 2007 after remaining at a consistent level of reported new cases for five years. What is disturbing is the rate of newly diagnosed cases of Syphilis, Gonorrhea and Chlamydia in our province; ones that are now twice the national average.
Syphilis has increased from 1.2 persons per 100,000 in 2003 to 7.3 persons per 100,000; a rate increase of 6.1 people in just 4 years. There has been a large spike of new infections among the population of men having sex with men (MSM) in the past three years with Calgary at a whopping 60% increase and Edmonton at 14% as of May 2008. Rates of Gonorrhea have been steadily increasing at a rate of 10 cases per 100,000 persons in the years of 2003 to 2007; with a staggering 64.4 persons per 100,000 reported in 2007. Chlamydia rates in Alberta have been consistently higher than the national average between the years of 1993 and 2007. On a brighter note the rates of newly diagnosed Hepatitis C infections has been on a steady decline since 2000 although the First Nations continue to have the highest rate per 100,000.
With all this said, Alberta continues to grow with a continuation of people moving to the province to meet the ever growing labour demands. It is important to understand that the rate of these STI’s will continue to grow in proportion to that growth, without the proper knowledge and understanding of how to protect yourself and others.
If you want or need to be tested for one or all of these STI’s, remember the tests are covered under your Alberta Health Care and are accessible through your personal physician, the Sexually Transmitted Diseases Clinic, or Calgary Safeworks. You can also contact AIDS Calgary Awareness Association for free workshops, HIV/STI information and referrals to other appropriate services (more info appears at the bottom of this article).
It is important to remember that any existing STI can greatly increase the chance of contracting HIV, so get the facts about STI’s and risk factors for infection. Protect yourself and your partners though safer sex practices and with open honest discussion in your personal relationships. Live and love healthy and well.
Resources:
Sexually Transmitted Disease Clinic
(403) 944-7575
Calgary Safeworks
(403) 955-6014
AIDS Calgary Awareness Association
110, 1603 10th Avenue SW, Calgary
(403) 508-2500
References:
Alberta Community Council on HIV report compilation:
Ameeta Singh BMBS, MSc, FRCPC
Infectious Disease Consultant
Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Health
Alberta Health and Wellness
Communicable Disease Reporting System
Provincial Program Development and Disease Control 2008.
Communicable Disease Reporting System: Notifiable Diseases and Sexually Transmitted Infections Databases as of May 23, 2008.
Surveillance and Epidemiology Section, Centre for Communicable Disease and Infection Control, Public Health Agency of Canada 2008; http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/std-mts/stdcases casmts/index.html) and Disease Control and Prevention, Alberta Health and Wellness May 23, 2008.
Alberta Health and Wellness Disease Control and Prevention data pulled February 2008.
