Arizona is now #8 out of 50 states for rates of P&S Syphilis.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported that three common STDs — chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis — had reached an all-time high in the United States. But Arizona outpaces much of the rest of the nation for certain STDs like syphilis. Arizona currently ranks 8th in the nation for new cases of P&S syphilis. The state falls more to the middle of the pack for gonorrhea and chlamydia, 20th and 18th, respectively.

Arizona’s population is aging. According to the Department of Health Services, there will be as many people over the age of 65 as those under 15 within the next decade. And in an environment that includes more liberal attitudes toward sex, divorce and affairs, more senior citizens are catching sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs — better known to older folks as VD, or venereal disease.

“We think of older adults being disinterested or asexual, but that’s not true at all. We’re sexually active well into our eighth and ninth decades,” said Marianne McCarthy, associate professor and researcher with Arizona State University College of Nursing and Health Innovations Center for Healthy Outcomes in Aging. “But as people get older, they tend not to practice safe sex as often as you’d think.”

Although young people 15-29 years old continue to be the top age group for new STD infections, rates among Arizona residents 55 and older are rising fast. And according to a study published in the scholarly journal Demography, there are a lot of older singles these days. Data show U.S. divorce rates among people over age 35 have doubled between 1980 and 2010. And many of these singles, having up to this point been in a monogamous relationship, aren’t educated about protecting themselves from STDs, and don’t see the need for condoms, now that they don’t have to worry about becoming pregnant.

Private Testing Center strives to combat the rising STD and HIV epidemic by offering safe, affordable and discreet STD Testing in San Diego and across the nation. We have over 50 locations in and around Phoenix, Arizona, as well as 2,000 nationwide testing labs. Same day appointments are available with as little as 15 minutes notice, and the average lab visit wraps up in under a half hour.

There’s no reason to leave your sexual health to chance. Since many STDs carry no outward symptoms, the only way to know for sure if you have one — and may be inadvertently infecting your sexual partners — is to get tested. Call us today.