Fort Hays State University - Reveille Yearbook (Hays, KS)

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road leading nowhere

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VD: It’ s no joking matter! by Kathy Schramm Venereal disease . . VD. . ■ ' siff ' . . . ‘bad blood ' . . . novels and plays, the subplot of of assorted jokes. . . ‘the clap’ . . . ‘the drip ' it is the subject of various soap operas, the punchline There are some people who do not laugh at the jokes and stories any more. The 14-year-old girl who has just had a complete hysterectomy does not think the jokes are very funny. The 21 -year-old man who turns pale and almost passes out from the pain of a burning sensation when he uri- nates feels like crying, not laughing. The young couple whose first child is stillborn because of syphilis does not see the humor of those stories any more. Venereal disease is considered a major kilter among communicable diseases in the United States. Three to four thousand people still die every year from VD. Countless oth- ers suffer blindness, insanity, steriiity, heart disease, arthritis and paralysis resulting from it. In 1945, medical authorities predicted that venereal disease could be completely destroyed. Yet in the past 1 7 years there has been a 350 per cent increase in teenage venereal disease, a 250 percent increase overall. While there are five or six types of venereal disease, depending upon the authority, syphilis and gonor- rhea account for 99 percent of all reported cases. Gonorrhea currently is the number one communicable disease and syphilis ranks third. Contrary to popular belief VD affects people of all ages, classes and social stratifications. The fact is that gonorrhea is in its eleventh year of epidemic proportions in the United States alone. Nearly 2,200,000 Americans contract gonor- rhea each year, 500,000 currently have syphilis, with 85,000 new cases added each year. Another American is infected with venereal disease every 1 5 seconds or less. According to the Public Affairs Committee, a New York City non-profit education organization the number of reported cases of VD exceeds those of strep throat, scarlet fever, measles, mumps, hepatitis and tuberculosis combined. For every reported case there are four to 10 cases that go unreported and often untreated. It is not that treatment is unavailable or costly. Fort Hays State Health Center, as well as Planned Parenthood and the Ellis County Health Office, offer free confidential testing. Stu- dent Health Center also offers free treatment. Yet with free testing and treatment, Kathy Douglas, Health Center R.N., reports that less than five per cent of the student body has made use of the services. The majority of that percentage does so for premarital or employment requirements only. Kansas state law requires a syphilis blood test before mar- riage, but there is no comparable gonorrhea prerequisite. Hence, a person may pass the required premarital physical and still carry and transmit venereal disease. Many factors contribute to the epidemic numbers, Among such factors: widespread availability and use of con- traceptives, greater sexual freedom, confidence in the ease of curing venereal disease resulting in a casual attitude towards it, and an apparent increase in homosexual activity. The basic problems concerning VD and homosexuals lies in the double stigma involved in tracing contacts. Many gay men and women seek treatment for themselves, but refuse to name any of their contacts. One of the most significant factors of this issue is the widespread use of “the pill. Not only does the use of an oral contraceptive permit greater sexual freedom by virtually elim- inating pregnancy fears, but it provides at least two other ways for the spread of venereal disease. First, there has been a sharp decrease in the use of the condom to prevent preg- nancy. “The pill makes the condom unnecessary in most cases. Because the condom prevents actual contact of membranes it is a fairly effective preventative of VD. Sec- ondly, the pill has increased woman’s susceptibility to gonorrhea. The chemical ingredients increase the moisture content of the vagina and provide an alkaline environment ideal for the growth of gonorrhea germs. One expert esti- mates that a woman usually has about a 40 percent chance of contracting gonorrhea following intercourse with an infected partner, A woman on the pill increases her chances of becoming infected to almost 1 00 percent. Ellis County, Hays and Fort Hays State are no exception to national figures and statistics. County Health information for 1976 shows 68 reported cases — 64 of gonorrhea and four of syphilis. According to Ellis County health officials County Health is usually the last resort for treatment and although physicians are required by law to report all cases they treat, very few actually and accurately do. This seriously hampers any possibilities of tracing contacts. One local phy- sician says he treated about 20 cases of venereal disease last year Student Health records show that 25 VD cases were treated during fall semester. This does not take into account any cases treated by local physicians, neighboring county health offices, or physicians in a student ' s hometown or area. Conservative estimates of actual incidence would run from 100 to 250 cases on campus during any one semester. One problem with venereal disease is that a person may have it and pass it on without knowing it. Ninety per cent of the women infected with gonorrhea do not know they have it. Anywhere from 20 to 40 percent of the men show no signs of it, at least in the early stages. If the primary chancre (pro- nounced ' shanker ' ) of syphilis is internal it might be 110 to 1 40 days before a person is even aware of it. Even when the chancre is external it might be as long as 90 days before it appears. During this time many additional people can be infected. Perhaps the greatest tragedy of venereal disease is the outdated attitude — the combination of apathy, irresponsibil- ity. and ignorance — that marks much of the FHS popula- tion. As long as this prevails there is no answer in sight. All the free, confidential services of the Student Health Center, Planned Parenthood Inc,, and other organizations are of no value if no one makes use of them. All the pamphlets availa- ble are meaningless if no one reads and heeds them. Vene- real disease . . . VD , , . ‘the clap’ . . . ‘the drip ' . . . ‘siff’ . , . ‘bad blood’ . . . It’s no joking matter! Venereal Disease 29