Wrap It Up Alaska campaign hopes to reduce STD rates Published July 10, 2014 By Chris McCann JBER Public Affairs JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARSDON, Alaska -- Layer into a shot glass: 1/3 ounce youth 1/3 ounce alcohol 1/3 ounce lust Top with a liberal dash of unpreparedness. (Youth can be substituted with more alcohol, if desired.) The recipe: perhaps disaster. Since 2000, Alaska has the first- or second-highest incidence in the United States of chlamydia (and other sexually transmitted infections and diseases). There is a high percentage of military personnel in the two most populous areas, Anchorage and Fairbanks. Troops under the age of 25 compose almost 40 percent of the military population; and in 2012, 83 percent of the cases of chlamydia in Alaska were in people under the age of 30, according to the state Department of Health and Social Services. Statistically, service members are in a risk group. Troops also are tested for HIV annually, which many may assume tests for all diseases; it doesn't. While most STDs are curable, some, like chlamydia, don't cause many symptoms; testing is the only way to know if you have it. Chlamydia can cause a host of other health issues, even for men, possibly resulting in infertility. In 2013, DHSS reported 5,792 new cases of chlamydia and 1,135 of gonorrhea. Healthcare providers throughout Alaska have reported 20 new cases of HIV and 20 cases of infectious syphilis just in 2014 - almost as high as the total numbers for all of 2013. Syphilis usually starts with a single sore, which then goes away. Later, there is often a rash, and general malaise, which again seems to "go away on its own." It doesn't; it's another latent stage. Untreated, it can cause blindness, brain and nerve damage, and progressive destruction of bones, joints, and blood vessels. Treated promptly after infection, it takes only a single dose of penicillin to cure. Waiting more than a few months may necessitate more treatments. The Centers for Disease Control reports that individuals infected with STDs are two to five times more likely to acquire HIV - and HIV-positive people are more likely to transmit the virus to others. The DHSS released fliers in May reporting a spike in syphilis and HIV among men who have sex with men. Fifty-five percent of the new HIV cases and 91 percent of new syphilis cases were in that demographic. One common denominator in the increased rates of infection, especially among men who have sex with men, is finding multiple sexual partners using smartphone apps or online hookup sites, officials said. In some cases, individuals don't even know the partner's real name, only an online nickname. That can make tracking down previous partners difficult after a diagnosis. Substance abuse also contributes to risk - whether it's an intoxicated hookup or having sex with a person who contracted a disease with an infected needle. While all forms of sex carry some risk of disease, "safer sex" consists of using condoms, limiting the number of partners or practicing mutual monogamy, and both partners being tested (and treated for any infections) before having sex. Public health officials advise if you're having sex outside of a mutually monogamous relationship, you should get tested for all STDs at least annually. If you're in a higher risk bracket - having many partners, for example - get tested more often, and treat any diagnosed infections promptly. With the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell," there is no reason for a service member to avoid getting tested or treated at the troop medical clinic or the JBER hospital. If, for some reason, an individual doesn't want to, there are other options, like local clinics - or even through the mail. Free condoms are often displayed, free for the taking, in military medical treatment facilities. The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, supported by the CDC and other governmental agencies, hosts iknowmine.org, a website dedicated to helping people live healthier lives, with an emphasis on STD prevention. Their "Wrap It Up Alaska" campaign offers free condoms online. They also have partnered with iwantthekit.org, a program with the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, which provides free STI test kits. A person can order a kit, provide samples in the privacy of home, and mail it back to the university; postage costs less than $3. Results are provided via telephone or email.