Adolescent Chlamydia Rates by Region, Race, and Sex: Trends From 2013 to 2017

Introduction: Chlamydia is the most common bacterial sexually transmitted infection in the United States. Adolescents (ages 15-19 years) have the highest infection rate, second only to young adults (ages 20-24 years). The purpose of this secondary data anal-ysis is to examine trends from 2013 to 2017 in adolescent chla-mydia rates by region, race, and sex.Method: Adolescent chlamydia rate data were obtained from the Center for Disease Control's National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention database. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the trends.Results: The overall trend in male and female adolescent chla-mydia rates increased from 2013 to 2017. Specifically, the trend increased faster in males, White adolescents, and those in the Northeast and Midwest regions of the country.Discussion: Health care providers are uniquely positioned to posi-tively affect adolescent chlamydia rates through targeted sexual health discussions and increased screening for sexually transmitted infections.