Infertility

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The health department reported that African-American teenagers 15 to 19 years are experiencing a more than 100 percent increase in the rate of gonorrhea infections, compared with 2004.

Among 20- to 24-year-olds the rate of gonorrhea increased by more than 90 percent since 2003.

In 2005, African-American women in San Francisco experienced 12 times the rate of gonorrhea infection than white women.

About 7 percent of San Franciscans are African-American, but more than 50 percent of gonorrhea occurs among African-Americans, according to the health department.

Pennan Barry, a medical epidemiologist with San Francisco STD Prevention and Control Services said the Department of Public Health "is concerned about this increase in gonorrhea.

We want to make sure that people who are at risk for gonorrhea are tested, and that people who test positive and their partners are treated promptly.'' A team from the department will be talking to young heterosexuals to try to find out what sort of risk factors might be contributing to the increase in gonorrhea cases.

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With a value of 1.4%, Cameroon presents the lowest prevalence rate of FGM/C among the countries with available data1.

At the sub-national level, however, FGM/C rates vary significantly across regional lines.

While FGM/C is not practiced in the North-West, South and Littoral regions of the country, 5% of women have been circumcised in the Extreme- North.

With regards to women characteristics, the highest prevalence rates are found among women aged 20-24 (3%), women without education (5%), Muslim women (6%) and women belonging to the Arabe-Choa/Peuls/Haoussa/Kanuri ethic group (13%).

Low levels of knowledge about the practice also exist: only 33% of women have heard about FGM/C.

This percentage is slightly higher for men (42%).

There are marked variations in knowledge by residence, education, ethnicity and residence.

More than 45% of female respondents in urban areas have heard of FGM/C, compared with 18% in rural areas.

In general, women with secondary education are more than twice as likely as women with no education or primary education to have heard about the practice.

Levels of knowledge among ethnic groups vary from 15% for women of the Adamaoua-Oubangui group to 45% for women belonging to the Cotier/Ngoe/Oroko group.

2004 DHS data indicated that 84% of women aged 15-49 in Cameroon believed the practice of FGM/C should be discontinued.

Support for the practice is higher among rural (1...