New figures show that sexually transmitted infection diagnoses have risen by 5%.
Sex on Female First
But the good news is, according to the Public Health England, it's mostly due to improved data collection.
However, the continuing high STI rates in Englad suggest too many people are still putting themselves at risk through unsafe sex, especially young adults and men who have sex with men.
Lloydspharmacy Online Doctor medical director Dr Tom Brett commented:
“The latest STI diagnoses statistics from Public Health England illustrate that there is still a widespread problem of people having unsafe sex and putting themselves at risk of contracting STIs – the issue is especially prevalent in young adults. If somebody has had unprotected sex with a new partner, or have had sex with more than one partner in the last year and they are concerned they may have an STI, it’s vital that they get tested. However, our own research has shown that there is a degree of reluctance and embarrassment among young people when seeking advice about STIs - over 21 per cent of people aged 18-24 say they have ignored possible STI symptoms because they were too embarrassed to go to their GP about them.
“This is a problem which needs to be addressed as the earlier STIs are detected the more effective the treatment will be. For STI advice, testing and treatments people should visit their GP or GUM clinics. If people feel uncomfortable or embarrassed about discussing these issues with a healthcare professional, they can access an online service such as Lloydspharmacy Online Doctor www.lloydspharmacy.com/doctor ,which offers confidential test and treatments for a range of sexual health conditions. People need to know where they can go for help and advice - convenient services like this will help people to monitor their sexual health more easily.”
Chlamydia remained the most commonly diagnosed STI, but considerable numbers of genital warts and genital herpes cases were also reported last year.
New gonorrhoea diagnoses rose 21% overall.
High gonorrhoea transmission rates are concerning as the global threat of antibiotic resistance grows. Ensuring treatment resistant strains of gonorrhoea do not persist and spread remains a public health priority, and the Gonorrhoea Resistance Action Plan for England and Wales was launched by PHE to help tackle this threat in early 2013.