STD outbreak in Grant County

Grant County Health Officer Dr. Alexander Brzezny has declared a gonorrhea outbreak in Grant County after rates of the sexually transmitted disease doubled this year. Doctors have been asked to screen their patients for the disease and those who are sexually active are asked to get tested. Gonorrhea is easily treated with antibiotics, but many people have no symptoms in the early stages of the disease. If left untreated it can cause infertility in men and women. The sharpest increase of cases has been in women ages 20 to 29 in Moses Lake, according to the Grant County Health District. Last year the Grant County gonorrhea rate was 35.9 per 100,000 people. This year it is 77.5 per 100,000 people. Symptoms can include a burning sensation while urinating, unusual discharge and abdominal pain. Residents of Grant County can contact the health district at (509) 766-7960 for more information.