Resources for STI Awareness Week: April 14-20, 2024

STI Awareness Week, observed April 14-20 this year, raises awareness about how sexually transmitted infections (STIs) impact people’s lives. It also highlights the importance of reducing the stigma, fear, and discrimination associated with STIs and ensuring people have the appropriate tools and knowledge regarding the prevention, testing, and treatment of STIs.

Did you know that many STIs are not noticed because they often have no symptoms? Testing is the only way to know for sure. The good news is that some infections can be cured, and all are treatable. If not treated, STIs can increase your chances of transmitting or getting HIV. An untreated STI can also lead to health problems, such as long-term pelvic or abdominal pain, difficulty getting pregnant, and other pregnancy complications that can lead to serious health conditions for your baby.

Join HIV.gov in raising awareness about STI prevention and treatment. Check out the information below to learn more about STIs. We encourage you to use these resources and tools for activities related to STI prevention, testing, and treatment to reduce STIs in the United States.

CDC 2022 STI Surveillance Report

The latest CDC data show that more than 2.5 million cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis were reported in the United States in 2022. Data about the syphilis epidemic is especially concerning because syphilis cases have reached the highest numbers since the 1950s. According to the CDC, 207,255 total syphilis cases were reported in the United States in 2022, representing an 80% increase since 2018, and more than 3,700 cases of congenital syphilis among newborns were documented by the CDC in 2022. If syphilis is not treated, it can seriously damage the heart and brain and can cause blindness, deafness, and paralysis. While the syphilis epidemic grew worse, reported chlamydia cases were level, and the number of gonorrhea cases fell for the first time in at least a decade. Although gonorrhea declined, this finding may suggest the need for an even closer look at public health efforts and greater prevention strategies, including those that improve access to STI testing and treatment.

STI National Strategic Plan

The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health through the Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy coordinated, along with other federal partners, the development of the first-ever STI National Strategic Plan (PDF, 2.49MB). The STI Plan provides a roadmap to reverse the increase in STI rates and sets forth a vision for a nation where STIs are prevented and every person has high-quality STI prevention, treatment, and care while living free from stigma and discrimination. Learn more about the STI Plan.

Addressing STIs: Ask. Test. Treat. Repeat.

This awareness campaign encourages STI care interventions regarding routine screening, testing, and treatment of STIs among people with HIV or people who are vulnerable to acquiring HIV. Learn moreExit Disclaimer about the campaign and check out its tools and resources for healthcare providers and clients.

CDC STI Awareness Week Campaign Toolkit

Check out the CDC toolkit for ways to use the three different campaigns below during STI Awareness Week activities and beyond. The toolkit is a resource that helps users reach the communities they serve, including young people and the general public, and it includes the campaigns’ themes, primary audiences, and materials, which can be customized to reach various audiences.

GYT: Get Yourself Tested

Although STIs affect people of all ages, the GYT: Get Yourself Tested campaign encourages STI testing and treatment for young people to protect their health and the health of their partners. It includes messages, helpful links, sample social media, and graphics.

Prepare Before You’re There

This campaign for the general public focuses on STI education, awareness, prevention, and communication. It encourages people to learn more about what puts them at risk for STIs and to have a game plan regarding safer sex and STI prevention before “the heat of the moment.”

Talk. Test. Treat.

This campaign includes messages about STI communication, testing, and treatment for the general public and healthcare providers. It encourages taking three simple actions—Talk. Test. Treat.—to protect not only individuals’ health but also the health of their partners and the health of patients.

We encourage individuals, healthcare providers, federal and non-federal agencies, and others to learn more about the campaigns, plan activities, and help spread the word about prevention, testing, and treatment during STI Awareness Week and throughout the year.