Responding Positively.(public health response to sexually transmitted disease treatment and prevention)

The problem of STDs in the United States is not new. In the early 1930s, one in 10 Americans was believed to have syphilis, and nearly 700,000 new cases of gonorrhea occurred annually. Throughout much of the 19th and 20th centuries, however, the country chose either to ignore the problem or to characterize sexually transmitted infections as symbols of moral decay and unrestrained sexuality that would only get worse if treatment were made widely available and condoms were promoted as a way to prevent infection. (1) These approaches did not prevent STDs in the 1930s, and they would not succeed in doing so today. The spread of STDs will be halted only if the current epidemic ...