For the first time in over a decade there has been a drop in the number of new sexually transmitted infections in England new research reveals.
The Health Protection Agency says although the reduction is small – only 1% down from the 424,782 cases diagnosed in 2009 – it is significant and a step in the right direction.

It says increased screening for diseases like chlamydia has helped.

For the first time rates of this disease show no rise and remain stable. There were 189,612 newly diagnosed cases of chlamydia last year.

At the same time, 2.2 million chlamydia tests were carried out in England among young people aged 15 to 24, an increase of 196,500 from the previous year.

Diagnoses of genital warts went down by 3% to 75,615 new diagnoses in 2010 and syphilis was down 8% to 2,624.

But other sex diseases continued to rise. Gonorrhoea went up by 3% from 15,978 diagnoses in 2009 to 16,531 in 2010. And genital herpes increased by 8% from 27,564 to 29,703.

Sexually Transmitted Infection trends

• Chlamydia stabilised at 189,612 in 2010
• Genital warts down 3% to 75,615 in 2010
• Syphilis down 8% to 2,624 in 2010
• Gonorrhoea up 3% to 16,531 in 2010
• Genital herpes up 8% to 29,703 in 2010

Young people under the age of 25 remain the group experiencing the highest rates of STIs overall.

Dr Gwenda Hughes, head of the HPA’s STI section, says the encouraging decreases “do not mean we can rest on our laurels”.

“It is particularly encouraging to see a decline in some STIs among young people. However, these latest figures show that the impact of STI diagnoses is still unacceptably high in this group.
Condoms ‘still safest’

“Studies suggest that those who become infected may be more likely to have unsafe sex or lack the skills and confidence to negotiate safer sex.

“Prevention efforts, such as greater STI screening coverage and easier access to sexual health services, should be sustained and continue to focus on groups at highest risk.”

To reduce the risk of STIs, experts advise using a condom when having sex with a new partner and continuing to do so until both parties have been screened.

And sexually active under-25-year-olds should be tested for chlamydia every year, or sooner if they change their partner.

From: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-13764817

Women should be tested for chlamydia every time they have a new sexual partner to cut their chances of pelvic disease, UK researchers say.

A study of 2,500 students found that annual screening is not enough to prevent cases of pelvic inflammatory disease, which can cause infertility.

In those who were found to have chlamydia, treatment cut the risk of pelvic disease by 80%.

The National Chlamydia Screening Programme backed the findings.

The researchers from St George’s, University of London, concluded that most cases of pelvic inflammatory disease were in women who did not have chlamydia when they were tested a year earlier.

The findings, published in the British Medical Journal, suggested they may have become infected in the 12 months after screening.

Chlamydia is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the UK and the number of cases is steadily rising.

The researchers recruited sexually active female students between the ages of 16 to 27 from 20 universities and colleges in London.

They were swabbed at the beginning of the study and tested for pelvic inflammatory disease, which as well as infertility can cause chronic pain and increase the risk of ectopic pregnancy, a year later.

The researchers found that most cases of pelvic inflammatory disease occurred in women who tested negative for chlamydia when they were initially tested.

Study leader Professor Pippa Oakeshott, who also works as a GP, said: “The crucial message is that individuals should get tested every time they have a new sexual partner.”

But she added that chlamydia was not the only cause of pelvic inflammatory disease.

“It’s probably several bacteria that cause it, and we should probably be screening for other things, but chlamydia and gonorrhoea is a good start.”

She also said testing needed to be more accessible to young people, with kits being given out in colleges and youth clubs.

A spokesman for the Health Protection Agency said the findings reinforced the testing policy of the National Chlamydia Screening Programme, which was launched in 2003.

“The study, looking at a single annual test, shows the importance of the programme’s approach to testing annually or on change of sexual partner because most cases of pelvic inflammatory disease occurred in women who initially tested negative for chlamydia.”

Last year the National Audit Office criticised the screening programme for duplicating effort and failing to test as many of the under-25 target group in England as it should have.

From: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8609354.stm

Facebook has been linked to a resurgence in the sexually transmitted disease (STD) syphilis, according to health experts.

The virus has increased fourfold in Sunderland, Durham and Teesside, the areas of Britain where Facebook is most popular, because it has given people a new way to meet multiple partners for casual sexual encounters.

Professor Peter Kelly, director of public health in Teesside, said staff had found a link between social networking sites and the rise in cases, especially among young women.
 
He said: “Syphilis is a devastating disease. Anyone who has unprotected sex with casual partners is at high risk.

“There has been a fourfold increase in the number of syphilis cases detected with more young women being affected.

“I don’t get the names of people affected, just figures, and I saw that several of the people had met sexual partners through these sites.

“Social networking sites are making it easier for people to meet up for casual sex.”

In Teesside there were 30 recorded cases of syphilis last year, but the true figures are expected t be much higher.

Research has shown that young people in Sunderland, Durham and Teesside were 25 per cent more likely to log onto social networking sites than those in the rest of Britain.

A Facebook spokesman said: users should “take precautions” and be careful when meeting up with anyone they have met online.

From: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/facebook/7508945/Facebook-linked-to-rise-in-syphilis.html