Gonorrhea--United States, 1998

Neisseria gonorrhoeae infections are a major cause of pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility, and ectopic pregnancy in women and facilitate the transmission of human immunodeficiency virus (1). To characterize the epidemiology of gonorrhea in the United States, CDC examined national surveillance data on gonorrhea cases reported to CDC through state health departments in 1998 and surveyed selected states with increases and decreases in gonorrhea rates since 1996. This report summarizes the results of this analysis, which indicate that following a 13-year decline, the number of gonorrhea cases in 1998 increased by 9% compared with 1997. Although changes in gonorrhea screening and surveillance practices may have contributed to the higher reported rates, reports from states suggest that true increases in gonorrhea cases also occurred in some populations.