Hamilton County STD rates exceed national averages

Health officials from Hamilton County, Ohio, have said that the area has experienced a "mini-epidemic" of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), according to a recent article published by Cincinnati.com.

The news provider reported that the county's rates of syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhea are five, three and two times higher than the national averages, respectively.

"We don't like to talk about it, but we have a problem here. We have a horrible problem locally that we need to address," said Eddie Hooker, an emergency medicine physician and associate professor of health services administration at Xavier University, quoted by the news source.

Hooker and other area health experts told the news organization that many people who are screened for STDs do not seek their final test results or do not inform their partners that they may be at risk for contracting an infection. These poor sexual health practices may contribute to the high prevalence of STDs in the county, they said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that there are 19 million new cases of STDs diagnosed each year in the U.S.