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ACOG Urges Partner Therapy to Cut STD Re-Infections

24.08.11

In states where expedited partner therapy is legal, doctors are encouraged to use it, the college said, and where it is ambiguous or illegal, they should advocate for changes in the law to allow the practice.

The opinion, drafted by the college's committees on adolescent health care and on gynecologic practice, notes that sexually transmitted infections disproportionately affect women "and create a preventable threat to their fertility."

In the U.S., chlamydia and gonorrhea are the most commonly reported sexually transmitted infections, with girls and young women ages 15 through 24 having the greatest number of cases of both.

An untreated male partner is a major source of re-infection, the college noted. For example, in adolescent and young women diagnosed with chlamydia, the rate of re-infection ranges from 14% to 26% within 12 months of the initial diagnosis.

"Of course, it's preferable that a physician examine a patient in-person before prescribing medication," according to Diane Merritt, MD, of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Mo., who is chair of the college's committee on adolescent health care.

Source: MedPage Today