STD Rates in Louisiana
CDC surveillance data for Louisiana covering chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV — with 15-year trends, state comparisons, and local testing resources.
Louisiana sits at the top of the national STD rankings — and not in a way that requires much qualification. The state's combined rate of 1,106.9 cases per 100,000 people in 2023 ranks first out of all 50 states. That number is 74% above the national combined median of 638.3. Every major STD tracked by the CDC — chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis — runs well above the national midpoint. What makes Louisiana's picture more complicated is that two of those three diseases have actually declined slightly from 2022, suggesting the state may be past a recent peak — but the baseline it's declining from is still the highest in the country.
Chlamydia is the dominant driver of Louisiana's overall burden, accounting for more than 36,000 diagnoses in 2023 at a rate of 792.4 per 100,000. The national median is 471.3. Louisiana's rate is nearly 70% above that figure. The long-run trajectory is what gives that number weight: since 2008, the chlamydia rate has climbed 55.6%, rising from 509 to 792 over 15 years with only occasional dips. The most recent year-over-year change was just 0.5% — essentially flat — which may signal a plateau, but the state has been near this level since 2018 without returning to anything resembling the national norm.
Gonorrhea tells a more volatile story. The rate peaked at 354.5 per 100,000 in 2021, then pulled back to 327.1 in 2022 and dropped again to 288.4 in 2023 — an 11.8% single-year decline. That's a real move, and it's the sharpest positive trend in Louisiana's recent data. Still, the current rate is 89% above the US median of 152.2, and the long-run change since 2008 is a 35.7% increase. Syphilis, meanwhile, has had the steepest long-run climb of the three — up 64.2% since 2008, from 15.9 to 26.1 per 100,000. It also ticked down slightly in 2023, off its 2022 peak of 26.7, but it remains well above the national median of 14.8.
Louisiana's HIV data — available through 2022 — shows a state that has been consistently among the highest in the country for new diagnoses. The rate peaked at 25.2 per 100,000 in 2017 and appeared to drop sharply to 18.4 in 2020, a dip almost certainly tied to pandemic-related disruptions in testing and diagnosis rather than a true decline in transmission. By 2022, the rate had returned to 22.6, nearly identical to 2019. For anyone living in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, or Shreveport — cities that anchor Louisiana's highest-burden regions — the combination of elevated STD rates and persistent HIV transmission makes routine testing a practical reality, not an occasional precaution. STDTest.com can help you find a testing location near you.
STD Trends in Louisiana
Louisiana's chlamydia rate of 792.4 per 100,000 is 68% above the national median of 471.3 — and the gap hasn't meaningfully closed in years. The rate has been essentially locked between 730 and 792 since 2017, suggesting a structural plateau at a high level rather than an active rise. The long-run climb of 55.6% since 2008 means the current baseline is the product of a decade and a half of accumulation, not a recent spike.
After climbing sharply between 2019 and 2021, Louisiana's gonorrhea rate has pulled back two years in a row — falling from 354.5 in 2021 to 288.4 in 2023, an 11.8% drop in the most recent year alone. That's the clearest downward movement in Louisiana's STD data right now. Even so, the current rate is 89% above the US median of 152.2, and it's still higher than it was at any point before 2020.
Syphilis has the steepest long-run trajectory of any STD in Louisiana's data — up 64.2% since 2008, from 15.9 to 26.1 per 100,000. The rate peaked at 26.7 in 2022 and edged down slightly in 2023, but it remains 76% above the national median of 14.8. Unlike gonorrhea, which saw a sharper recent pullback, syphilis in Louisiana has held near its peak with only a marginal decline.
Louisiana's HIV diagnosis rate has hovered between 22 and 25 per 100,000 for most of the period from 2017 to 2022 — consistently among the highest in the US. The drop to 18.4 in 2020 almost certainly reflects reduced testing access during the pandemic rather than a genuine decline in new infections. By 2022, the rate had climbed back to 22.6, in line with pre-pandemic levels. Note that HIV data here covers 2017–2022; 2023 figures are not yet reflected.
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Louisiana vs National Average
Comparing 2023 rates against the U.S. median across all 50 states.
| Infection | Louisiana | US Median | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 792.4 | 471.3 | 68.1% above |
| Gonorrhea | 288.4 | 152.2 | 89.5% above |
| Syphilis (P&S) | 26.1 | 14.8 | 76.4% above |
What the numbers mean — and what to do about them
Louisiana's combined STD rate of 1,106.9 per 100,000 isn't just a number at the top of a national ranking — it translates to roughly 50,600 new diagnoses of chlamydia, gonorrhea, or syphilis in a single year, in a state of 4.5 million people. That's about one in every 90 residents diagnosed in 2023 alone. At that scale, STDs in Louisiana aren't a niche public health concern. They're a routine part of the healthcare landscape, and the data has looked like this — or worse — for more than a decade.
The trend that deserves the most attention isn't the one that's falling — it's chlamydia, which has been essentially flat near its all-time high since 2017 and is 68% above the national median. Chlamydia rarely causes noticeable symptoms, which is exactly what makes a high and stable rate so consequential. When a disease spreads silently and consistently, the case counts in any given year reflect only the people who happened to get tested — not the full picture of transmission. The same logic applies to gonorrhea, which despite a recent two-year decline is still running at nearly double the national median rate.
If you live in Louisiana — especially in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, or Shreveport — the case for routine STD testing isn't abstract. Louisiana has led or ranked near the top of national STD rankings for years, and the numbers have remained high across every major disease category. Annual testing is a reasonable baseline for any sexually active adult; every three to six months makes sense if you have multiple partners or a previous STD diagnosis. Louisiana has ranked first in the country for combined STD rates — STDTest.com can show you where to get tested today, with locations across New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Shreveport, and beyond.
WHO SHOULD GET TESTED
Any sexually active adult in Louisiana should consider routine STD screening, given the state's #1 national ranking for combined STD rates. People under 25 face the highest chlamydia burden nationally, and Louisiana's rate of 792.4 per 100,000 — 68% above the US median — makes that especially relevant here. Anyone with multiple partners, a prior STD diagnosis, or who lives in high-burden urban areas like New Orleans, Baton Rouge, or Shreveport should treat testing as a regular part of healthcare, not a response to symptoms.
HOW OFTEN
Once a year is a reasonable minimum for sexually active adults in Louisiana. Given that chlamydia rates have been near their long-run high since 2017 — and gonorrhea remains nearly double the national median even after recent declines — every three to six months is more appropriate for anyone with multiple partners. Syphilis has risen 64% since 2008 and remains well above the national median, making it worth including in any comprehensive screening panel.
WHAT TO EXPECT
STD testing is fast and straightforward. Most tests involve a urine sample, a blood draw, or a swab — depending on which infections are being screened. Results typically come back within a few days. Many clinics in Louisiana offer confidential testing without requiring a referral, and same-day appointments are widely available through STDTest.com. If a result comes back positive, treatment for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis is available and effective.
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