People are being warned as cases of gonorrhoea have soared across the country. A staggering spike of 166 per cent has been recorded in the South West and STI diagnoses have also risen overall by 33 per cent in one year.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is now urging everyone who is having sex with new or casual partners to wear a condom and get tested regularly – whatever their age or sexual orientation.
The rise in STIs follows a decline in diagnoses during the coronavirus pandemic because of disruption to sexual health services and changes in behaviour which may have reduced transmission.
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Most STIs are easily treated with antibiotics, but many can cause serious health issues if left untreated. Chlamydia and gonorrhoea can cause infertility and pelvic inflammatory disease, while syphilis can cause serious, irreversible and potentially life-threatening problems with your brain, heart, or nerves.
Infection rates for gonorrhoea in the South West are of particular concern. Diagnoses of gonorrhoea rose by 166% between 2021 (1575) and 2022 (4185) and 67% over the past 5 years (2499 in 2018 to 4,494 in 2022).
Norah O’Brien, Sexual Health Facilitator for UKHSA South West said: “The rise in sexually transmitted infections, particularly gonorrhoea in the South West is concerning. Gonorrhoea is becoming increasingly resistant to antibiotics and at risk of becoming untreatable in the future, making it vital that people test early and diagnose the infection so that they can prevent passing it on.
“STIs can pose serious consequences to health – both your own and that of current and future sexual partners. No matter what age you are, if you are having condomless sex with new or casual partners, regular testing for STIs and HIV is essential to maintain good sexual health. Testing is free and confidential and can be accessed through local sexual health clinics, university and college medical centres or through self-sampling kits sent discreetly through the post.”
Symptoms of gonorrhoea
Typical symptoms of gonorrhoea include a thick green or yellow discharge from the vagina or penis, pain when peeing and, in women, bleeding between periods. But around 1 in 10 infected men and almost half of infected women do not experience any symptoms.
Getting tested
If you have any of the symptoms of gonorrhoea or you're worried you may have an STI, you should visit a sexual health clinic for a sexual health test.
You can also contact the national sexual health helpline free on 0300 123 7123:
- Monday to Friday: 9am to 8pm
- Saturday and Sunday: 11am to 4pm
Risk factors
- It is discovered that sexually active women younger than 25 and men who have sex with men are at increased risk of getting gonorrhoea.
- Other risk factors include:
- Having a new sex partner
- Having a sex partner who has other partners
- Having more than one sex partner
- Having had gonorrhoea or another sexually transmitted infection
