Gonorrhoea cases reach record high in England

A record number of people in England were diagnosed with gonorrhoea last year, annual UK Health Security Agency figures show.

Diagnoses rose 7.5% - from 79,268 in 2022 to 85,223 in 2023.

Syphilis, meanwhile, rose 9.4% - from 8,693 to 9,513, the highest number since 1948 - with more heterosexual men and women becoming infected.

Overall, sexually transmitted infection diagnoses, including several different STIs, rose 4.7%.

The British Association of Sexual Health and HIV said the rise in STIs was a “concerning indicator” of pressure on sexual-health services and called for a new strategy.

President Prof Matt Phillips said: “We find ourselves at a critical point for securing the viability of sexual-health services.

“From recruitment challenges, to public-health funding, to ensuring the right experts are supporting every clinic, the next government has an opportunity to change the tides and address these barriers, to ensure everyone has timely access to expertise to support good sexual health and wellbeing.”

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Source: BBC News, 4 June 2024