Around 5 percent of American women aged between 14 and 39 have the sexually transmitted infection, Chlamydia, according to a report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The health experts said that most of the women are not even aware that they have the disease.
The findings were based on an analysis of data gathered from the 2007 to 2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The team found that the chlamydia infection rate was higher in young women with 4.7 percent of girls aged between 14 and 24 infected with the disease in 2012.
"Chlamydia is common, and it's especially common in young women. Most young women who are infected don't know they have it," said study author Elizabeth Torrone, an epidemiologist with the CDC's division of STD prevention, reports HealthDay. "This report really underscores the need for young women to be screened for chlamydia annually."
The infection has potential to cause various health problems, if not treated. Some of these health issues are fertility and pregnancy complications. According to the CDC report, the chlamydia rates were the highest in black women with 13.5 percent of them aged between 14 and 24 suffering with the infection. For Mexican-American and white women, the rates were 4.5 and 1.8 percent respectively.
Despite these high rates in women, the overall prevalence of this STI in people aged 14 to 34 has remained steady for about 10 years, the report found. From 2007 to 2008, the overall infection rate was at 1.6 percent. From 2009 to 2010 and 2011 to 2012, the rate increased slightly to 1.7 percent and then to 1.9 percent.
The report, 'Prevalence of Chlamydia trachomatis Genital Infection Among Persons Aged 14-39 Years - United States, 2007-2012,' was published in CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
