OLYMPIA — State health officials say gonorrhea is spreading in Washington.
The number of gonorrhea cases diagnosed rose by nearly 40 percent in 2014 — from 4,395 cases in 2013 to 6,136 cases in 2014.
Health officials also reported a 33 percent increase from 2012 to 2013.
Gonorrhea is the second most common sexually transmitted disease in the state.
Rates of infection have been going up since 2009 — from a rate of 34 cases per 100,000 people that year to a rate of 88 cases per 100,000 in 2014.
State health officials say they have yet to determine the reason for the increase, but they say increases have been seen in most counties of the state, in both men and women of various age groups. Young adults are the most affected.
