What’s New

The First Friday of October is National Disease Intervention Specialists (DIS) Recognition Day 

• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: A special thanks from Dr. Jonathan Mermin, National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention Director, and Dr. Leandro Mena, Division of STD Prevention Director

Historic Five‐Year Investment for Disease Intervention Specialists Workforce

• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: CDC’s Division of STD Prevention distributes $200 million to health departments for the first year of the CDC Disease Intervention Specialists Workforce Development Supplement. (September 24, 2021)

Preliminary CDC data show nearly 2,100 cases of newborn syphilis in 2020.

• Congenital Syphilis: Preliminary 2020 Data: Slides, interpretive text, and technical notes are available for download. (September 16, 2021)

Congenital Syphilis Diagnosed Beyond the Neonatal Period in the United States: 2014-2018external icon: New study finds 67 symptomatic infants were diagnosed with congenital syphilis beyond the neonatal period (>28 days) during this time. (August 31, 2021)

• Video abstractexternal icon

Dr. Leandro Mena is the new Director for the Division of STD Prevention

• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: Dr. Leandro Mena, MD, MPH, Division of STD Prevention Director, on the future of STI prevention and joining CDC. (August 2, 2021)

Dear Colleague Letter from the Division of STD Prevention:pdf icon CDC Awards $11.1 Million for HIV Prevention Services in STD Clinics.

• Dear Colleague Letter from the Division of HIV Prevention: Advancing the Ending the HIV Epidemic Initiative in the U.S. with a $117 Million Investment.

2021 STI Treatment Guidelines (July 22, 2021)

• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: Raul Romaguera, DMD, MPH, Acting Director for DSTDP, on CDC’s publication of the 2021 STI Treatment Guidelines, including notable screening and treatment updates.
• Provider Resources: Access print-friendly version of the wall chart, pocket guide, and guidelines.
• Recommendations for Providing Quality STD Clinical Services (STD QCS): Guidelines companion with recommendations and tools to help healthcare settings improve STD care services.

CDC invests more than $7M to help states address urgent STI prioritiespdf icon (July 13, 2021)

American Rescue Plan Act of 2021: Funding to Hire and Train Public Health Workersexternal icon

• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: White House announces $1.13 billion investment to strengthen the disease intervention specialists workforce. (May 13, 2021)

Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) Surveillance, 2019 (April 13, 2021)

• Announcement: CDC’s Acting STD Director on the release of national STD trends in the U.S.
• Press Release: Reported STDs in the U.S. reach all-time high for 6th consecutive year
• Communication Resources: Social media messages, graphics, and other materials to help you engage with your community

STD Awareness Week (April 11-17, 2021)

• STD Awareness Week Campaign Toolkit:  Ideas on planning activities for STD Awareness Week
• STD Awareness Week campaigns offer a variety of premade social media graphics and customizable messages
  • GYT: Get Yourself Tested:  Encourages young people to get tested for STDs and HIV
  • Syphilis Strikes Back:  Highlights the resurgence of syphilis and the threat against gay and bisexual men, and women and newborns
  • Talk | Test | Treat:  Focuses on actions people and healthcare providers can take to protect their health, the health of their partners, and that of their patients

Sexually Transmitted Infections Prevalence, Incidence, and Cost Estimates in the United States (January 25, 2021)

• At A Glance: STI Prevalence, Incidence, and Cost Estimates in the United States
• Social Media Materials: Messages and Graphics to Help Spread the Word
• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: Announcement about Updated STI Prevalence, Incidence, and Cost Estimates
• Press release: CDC Estimates 1 in 5 People in the U.S. Have a Sexually Transmitted Infection

Sexually Transmitted Infections National Strategic Plan for the United States: 2021-2025external icon

• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: HHS launches nation’s first-ever plan of its kind for STIs. (December 18, 2020)

2020 Update to CDC’s Treatment for Gonococcal Infections

• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: Dr. Gail Bolan, Division of STD Prevention Director, on new gonorrhea treatment recommendation to guard against resistance and ensure patients receive the most effective treatment. (December 18, 2020)

STD Care and Prevention Guidance During Disruption of Clinical Services

• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: Shortage of STI Diagnostic Kits and Supplies (September 8, 2020)
• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: Providing effective care and prevention when facility-based services and in-person patient-clinician contact is limited. (April 6, 2020)
  • • Update: STD Treatment Optionspdf icon (May 13, 2020)

The Toolkit for Technology-based Partner Services has been updated! You will find new examples from the field, as well as information about how to conduct partner services using text messages and geolocating mobile apps.

• IPS Toolkit
• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon  from Dr. Gail Bolan, Director, Division of STD Prevention

New case stories are available for phase two of CDC’s Community Approaches to Reducing Sexually Transmitted Diseases (CARS). Learn how each funding recipient used community engagement to address health disparities and increase STD prevention. (June 8, 2020)

• Baltimore
• Chicago
• Michigan
• Philadelphia

New analysis finds 1 in 2 newborn syphilis cases occur due to gaps in testing and treatment during prenatal care. (June 4, 2020)

• Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR): Missed Opportunities for Prevention of Congenital Syphilis – United States, 2018
• Dear Colleague Letter:pdf icon from Dr. Gail Bolan, Director, Division of STD Prevention

The 2020 STD Prevention Conference is now virtual with extended dates from September 14-24.

• Conference Website: Updates and details will post here as available.

Recommendations for Providing Quality STD Clinical Services (STD QCS):  New CDC report highlights services healthcare settings can offer to provide the highest-quality STD care for their patients. (January 6, 2020)

• Dear Colleague Letterpdf icon: Dr. Gail Bolan, Division of STD Prevention Director, on how STD QCS can help guide clinical operations in healthcare settings to optimize STD care services.
• Graphic:  explaining how STD QCS and the STI Treatment Guidelines can work together to optimize care.

New CDC analysis suggests gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) are at increased risk for extragenital STDs [i.e., chlamydia or gonorrhea in the throat or rectum] (April 11, 2019)

• Extragenital Chlamydia and Gonorrhea Among Community Venue–Attending Men Who Have Sex with Men — Five Cities, United States, 2017

Medscape Commentaryexternal icon: Dr. Laura H. Bachmann, MD, MPH, on the surge in congenital syphilis and what healthcare providers can do to stop it (January 23, 2019)