It’s Wyoming’s most prevalent sexually transmitted disease. Known as the silent infection, most men and women that have Chlamydia never show any symptoms. Left untreated, the infection can eventually lead to infertility in women as well as other complications.
Kim Deti, spokeswoman for the Wyoming Department of Health, says over 2,500 people were diagnosed with Chlamydia in the state last year—nearly 300 more than the previous year.
Deti thinks that’s partly due to the increased availability of free, year-round screening, something she hopes people will continue to take advantage of.
"What we do is we offer vouchers so people can either print from their website or we give them a text voucher on their smart phone they can take and there are clinics all across the state that will accept them as vouchers for testing so people will know their status," says Deti.
She says testing is a good idea for all sexually active teens and young adults.
"Especially those who have new partners in the past couple of months," says Deti, "it’s important for pregnant women, and it’s important for those who have had multiple sexual partners in the last couple of months. Also those with a past history of perhaps being in jail or a past history of having an STD."
For a voucher, go to www.knowyo.org or text know to 91011.
