In 1998, 355,131 gonorrhea cases were reported to CDC compared with 325,861 cases in 1997. From 1997 to 1998, the rate in the Midwest increased by 16.4% (from 120.0 to 139.7), in the South by 8.7% (from 186.4 to 202.7), and in the West by 6.5% (from 50.6 to 53.9). In the Northeast, the gonorrhea rate declined by 0.8% (from 87.8 to 87.1). From 1997 to 1998, gonorrhea rates increased in 34 states. In 1998 in 22 states, the rate was above the national health objective for 2000 of 100 cases per 100,000 population, and represented 79% of gonorrhea cases reported in 1998.
From 1997 to 1998, the gonorrhea rate increased 10.5% among women and 7.4% among men. In 1998, the gonorrhea rate among non-Hispanic whites increased by 11.3%, among non-Hispanic blacks by 13.5%, among Hispanics by 15.9%, among American Indians/Alaska Natives by 17.0%, and among Asians/Pacific Islanders by 19.8%. Among women aged 15--19 years, the sex-age group with the highest rate of gonococcal infection, the rate increased by 11.4%. Among men aged 20--24 years, the rate increased by 11.3%.
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