Sexually transmitted infections are on the increase in Kent with little indication the trend will stop.
Figures obtained by KOS Media via the Freedom of Information Act reveal cases of chlamydia and genital warts in particular have risen dramatically over the last three years.
In Medway the number of chlamydia patients has increased by 122 per cent from 224 in 2005-06 to 497 in 2007-08.
And in the area covered by Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust, the figure for warts has risen by 54 per cent from 681 cases to 1,051.
Public health director Meradin Peachey, who works on behalf of Kent County Council and the county’s primary care trusts, admitted it was a worrying trend.
She said: “These increases are not a recent problem and the numbers have actually been going up for about 10 years now.
“The problem with chlamydia and warts is that they are both easy to catch and pass on, and the obvious reasons are that people are not using contraceptives or are having multiple sexual partners who they do not know very well.
“It has a lot to do with young people not making healthy choices, such as becoming sexually active too early or drinking too much on a night out and not thinking about the potential consequences of what they are doing.
“I think all STIs are on the increase but few have risen as dramatically as chlamydia and warts. HIV is still on the increase but it’s a lot slower.”
Figures for chlamydia – which is more common in women than men and can lead to infertility if untreated – have risen year-on-year since 2005 in the areas covered by the NHS Trusts of Medway, Dartford and Gravesham, Maidstone and Tun-bridge Wells and Bromley.
Eastern and Coastal Kent Primary Care Trust saw a rise from 979 in 2005-06 to 1,004 in 2006-07, but that figure dipped to 994 in 2007-08.
Dr Chula Wijesurendra, a consultant at Medway hospital’s sexual health clinic, said one of the reasons for the increases was that it was now quicker and easier for people to access such clinics.
But he admitted people needed to be educated more about the potential consequences of unprotected sex.
Dr Wijesurendra said: “The message needs to be instilled time and time again, and that’s the only way.
“We are so busy diagnosing patients and treating them that we don’t have a lot of time to educate them, so we haven’t made much progress in combating the infections. But people need to understand the implications.”
Despite the increases, the number of gonorrhoea cases has remained relatively stable throughout the county and in some areas has dropped.
Dr Wijesurendra said this was due to symptoms of the infection being recognised soon after it had been caught, whereas chlamydia can often go undetected for years.
He said: “We advise people between the ages of 16 to 25 to have sexual health checks at least once a year. People often have no idea they have chlamydia and are then understandably devastated when in some cases they find out they cannot have children because of it.”
You can visit www.chlamydiascreening.nhs.uk for information on screening.
POSTED: 29/11/2008 12:00:00
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