Philly health unit says gonorrhea on the rise

Reported cases of gonorrhea rose 26 percent in the first six months of 2010 compared with the same period last year, the city Department of Public Health said.

It is possible that the higher numbers reflect more testing, the city said in an advisory sent Monday to health-care providers. Still, after several years of modest declines through 2009, the increase - to 2,876 cases in the first half of this year - is a public health concern, Caroline C. Johnson, director of the department's Division of Disease Control, said Tuesday.