Sexually transmitted infections (STIs)

Since 1995 there has been a rise in the diagnosis of acute sexually transmitted infections such as genital chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis and genital warts. In particular, there have been large and increasing numbers of diagnoses among teenage women and men who have sex with men. This may be because more people are aware of STIs and are visiting clinics to be tested, but risky behaviour continues to be a factor in the increase.   However, the latest figures for England show a small fall in the number of STIs diagnosed in 2010, especially amongst young people.

The figures on this page will be updated when data for the whole of the UK is released later this summer.

Genito Urinary Medicine clinics in the United Kingdom diagnosed 114,686 cases of chlamydia during 2009 and 91,257 cases of genital warts. 17,001 cases of gonorrhoea were reported and 30,126 cases of genital herpes were found. 2,211 syphilis cases were reported.

In GUM clinics 75% of diagnoses of chlamydia infection in women occurred in the under 25 age group; 35% of diagnoses were in 16-19 year old young women.

In addition to diagnoses at GUM clinics almost 103,000 young people were diagnosed with chlamydia in community based settings.   The total number of diagnoses in all settings was 217,570 in 2009.

There were 6,658 new diagnoses of HIV during 2010 (the latest full year for which data is available).  It is estimated that the number of people living with HIV in the UK (diagnosed and undiagnosed) will reach 100,000 in 2012.

There is a strong link between social deprivation and STIs. The rates of gonorrhoea in some inner city black and minority ethnic groups, for instance, are ten or eleven times higher than in whites and diagnoses of STIs increase with each quintile of deprivation.

For more information, download the Brook factsheet Sexually transmitted infections