Open Forum: Some parents are calling for more sex education in schools

The numbers of STDs —  sexually transmitted diseases — and teen pregnancies being reported among the 15 to 25 age group in Clark County is prompting parents to call for a renewed emphasis on sex education in the public schools. Other than a week in fifth grade, said one mother, children are not receiving this information in their classes. So, the “education” kids are receiving today is largely what they hear in school bathrooms and parties.

To find out more about the STD issue, I talked last week with Derek Scrivner, the public health investigator for seven Arkansas counties. Later I met with Cindy Humphries, an RN and the assistant patient care manager for the southwest region of the Arkansas Department of Health, about unwanted teen pregnancies, some as young as 11 and 12. Scrivner and Humphries agree that the goal should be to get the attention of sexually active young people about the risks they are taking.

Downs: Do you regard the number of STDs being reported as a problem?

Scrivner: Yes. The biggest STD problem in our high school and junior high school is gonorrhea and chlamydia, which are the most common in the 15-25 age group. We also see cases of genital herpes and some HPV-human papillomavirus, which causes genital warts.  Warts can be treated as they come up but there is no cure for it. HPV has also been linked to cervical cancer in females.

Downs: How does Clark County compare to the state average in STDs?

Scrivner: Clark may be a little higher than the average because of the concentration of college students who are falling within the 15 to 25 age range. There were 4,500 gonorrhea cases reported statewide in 2008. In 2007, Clark County — mainly Amity, Gurdon and Arkadelphia — had about 40 cases. There were  also 109 cases of chlamydia reported in Clark County in 2007.

Downs: How treatable are gonorrhea and chlamydia?

Scrivner:  They are easier to treat than other STDs, but about 50 percent of people who catch these two don’t have any symptoms, so there are people who are infected but have no reason to think anything is wrong.

Downs: Are there any  reported cases of HIV in the public schools?

Scrivner: Not since I have been here, although there have been a few through the years. The most common ages for people diagnosed with HIV are in their 30s or 40s.

Downs:  What are the symptoms of these diseases?

Scrivner: If someone has symptoms — and 40 to 60 percent will not — there will be a discharge of some sort that can be anywhere from white to clear to green and yellow. When males come in who are experiencing discharges, it’s almost always caused by an STD. If a female comes in with an abnormal color discharge, it can be any number of things causing it, so we treat them a little differently. But burning during urination is the most common symptom along with the discharge.

Downs: What happens if these diseases are not treated?

Scrivner: If they are left untreated long enough, some females within a week or two go from a regular gonorrhea or chlamydia infection to P.I.D. (pelvic inflammatory disease). This is where the bacteria has gotten through or around the cervix and into the sex organs and affected the uterus, the fallopian tubes, ovaries, wherever it’s had time to travel to, which can lead to sterility. Once those infected fallopian tubes have healed, it always leaves a little scar tissue in those tubes. And that’s the tube the egg travels down to bring about pregnancy. So if that egg gets stuck because of the scar tissue, they will never be able to have a baby. Sometimes it takes only one infection to do this. Sometimes it takes several to build up enough scar tissue.

Downs: Are the kids aware of this?

Scrivner: Some I talk with are very aware of it and scared to death. Others we talk to may come in here four or five times a year and test positive. But it’s hard to convince some of them that they are taking a real big chance here. We do our best but some come in over and over and when that happens, they are either not disclosing all their partners to us so we can get everybody treated or they are just having sex with that many different people that they just keep getting re-infected.

Downs: What do you hear from parents?

Scrivner: I don’t get to talk with parents very much. HIPA — the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act — and confidentiality laws basically say that medical information is private for each individual person. This means we can’t discuss any STD results or testing with parents of children of any age. The only exception is younger children who are suspected victims of child abuse, which can be different.

Next week: Part 2 of my conversation with Derek Scrivner. Questions? Answers? Concerns? Contact Bill Downs: downsw@sbcglobal.net.