There has been a sharp rise in the number of diagnosed cases of the sexually transmitted disease gonorrhoea, according to official data. The rise has been largest among teenagers.
Experts fear the rise shows that safe sex messages are being increasingly ignored.
The number of cases of gonorrhoea has been rising since 1994, but this is the largest rise that has been seen in a single year since that time. The PHLS warns that further analysis of the data is necessary before detailed conclusions can be drawn. But it says the initial figures suggest that there have been substantial increases in all age groups and virtually all regions of England. Clearly, a lot of people, and especially young people, are putting themselves and their partners at risk through unsafe sex. Dr Catchpole said that during the late 1980s more people paid heed to safe sex messages, and consequently there was a decline in STD infections.