Unalaska, AK – Gonorrhea and chlamydia rates in Alaska continue to trend up, but the Aleutian-Pribilof Islands region seems to be avoiding the epidemic.

The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services has released data showing a 13% increase in the rate of chlamydia across the state. Alaska has consistently had the highest rate of chlamydia in the nation for the past decade. Meanwhile, the gonorrhea rate went up 23% last year, and Alaska has the second highest rate in the country, just after Mississippi.

The bulk of the chlamydia cases have occurred in the southwest region. But unlike the Y-K Delta and the Bristol Bay region, the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands have actually seen a drop in the chlamydia rate. While the Y-K Delta has a rate of about 2,400 cases per 100,000 people, the Aleutian-Pribilof region has a rate of just about 240 per 100,000 - the lowest rate in the state. Only 17 cases of chlamydia were reported in the area in 2010.

Females accounted for approximately 60% of the chlamydia cases in the region. Over 80% of cases occurred in individuals between the ages of 20 and 29. Over 50% of the cases occurred among Alaska Natives or American Indians. The breakdown for other races is not disclosed because fewer than five cases were reported.

Meanwhile, the gonorrhea rate in the region stays flat at zero.

Susan Jones is the HIV-STD program manager for DHSS. She says that the Aleutians have consistently had lower rates than the rest of Alaska, but it's not totally clear why.

"The Southeast and the Aleutian Chain have had lower rates. Now why is that? There just isn't as much disease out there," says Jones. "Maybe people just aren't coming in to get tested."

But she adds that in towns with large transient populations, the state data might not reflect the real instance of disease in communities. That's because the data is tied to residence, not location reported.

"Your providers in Unalaska may see more cases of chlamydia than our section is reporting for your area, because you're seeing both people who live there and people who don't live there," she says. "We only count the people who live there when we count our data."

But even factoring that in, there are few reported cases in Unalaska. Sonia Handforth-Kome is the executive director of Iliuliuk Family and Health Services, and she says that just two cases of chlamydia were reported last year. But she says that STD cases do tend to pop up along with seasonal population booms, like pollock A season.

"I looked at this year, and I looked at last year, and all over our tested cases are in A season," says Handforth-Kome.

She adds that while the region has had traditionally low rates, one carrier can cause these rates to jump.

"We have such a small relative population that small changes in the rates can produce large percentage changes," says Handforth-Kome.

To keep rates low, Handforth-Kome recommends using protection like condoms and limiting the number of one's sexual partners. She adds that regular screening is also important, and that community health centers like IFHS will often offer discounted rates for testing.

"We want to create an incentive for folks to do the screening," she says.

More information can be found on STD rates in Alaska at the state epidemiology website.