DefinitionChlamydia cases reported in the state of New Mexico per 100,000 population.
NumeratorNumber of cases of chlamydia reported to the state of New Mexico (and Centers for Disease Control) in New Mexico residents
from all health care providers.
Data Interpretation IssuesRates are partly a function of how much testing is done - the more you test, the more you find - which is why females have
roughly three times the number of reported cases as males. Testing increased throughout the 1990s, and the number of new
cases jumped in 2004 due to new nucleic acid amplitude testing technology which is much more sensitive than previous culture
Why Is This Important?Chlamydia is the most common bacterial sexually transmitted disease. Even though symptoms of chlamydia are usually mild or
absent, serious complications that cause irreversible damage, including infertility, can occur "silently" before a woman ever
recognizes a problem(1). It is the leading preventable cause of infertility, and screening and treatment are the best means
of preventing it.
Other ObjectivesSimilar to HP2020 objectives STD-1: Reduce the proportion of adolescents and young adults with Chlamydia trachomatis infections
and STD-2: Reduce Chlamydia rates among females aged 15 to 44 years.
How Are We Doing?Overall, chlamydia rates have been increasing from 2005 (435.0 per 100,000 population) to 2012 (573.2 per 100,000 population).
In 2012, chlamydia rates were highest in the American Indian/Alaska Native race/ethnicity category (1106.1 per 100,000),
second highest in the Black/African American category, (691.2 per 100,000 population), and third highest in the Hispanic category
(436.6 per 100,000). The lowest rates were found in the White category (190.1 per 100,000 population) and Asian/Pacific Islander
category (122.2 per 100,000) respectively. By county, the highest Chlamydia rate for 2012 was found in McKinley county (1291.1
per 100,000), followed by Dona Ana County (698.5 per 100,000) and Bernalillo County (612.5 per 100,000). It is unknown whether
this is an actual increase in rates or due to better testing and detection activities.
How Do We Compare With the U.S.?Chlamydia rates in New Mexico have consistently ranked higher than U.S. rates from year 2005 to 2011. In 2011, New Mexico
had the 8th highest Chlamydia rate in the U.S. (U.S. data for 2012 not available as of this printing).
What Is Being Done?Chlamydia testing is performed on females under age 26 at approximately 200 test sites including 54 public health offices
and family planning and other provider agreement sites, in addition to routine treatment and surveillance activities.
Evidence-based PracticesDespite an A recommendation from the U.S Preventive Services Task Force to annually screen all sexually active females under
age 25, data from health plans shows that fewer than 50% of that group actually gets screened each year. Chlamydia is the
leading preventable cause of infertility, and screening and treatment are the best means of preventing it.