More gonorrhoea and syphilis diagnoses, despite fewer STI consultations

Fewer and fewer people are visiting clinics with questions about a possible sexually transmitted infection (STI). However, the number of infections is increasing, especially for gonorrhea and syphilis, according to the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM).

In the first half of this year, the Sexual Health Centers handled just over 73,000 consultations, almost 11 percent fewer than the same period last year. The RIVM noted that the decline is mainly among women and heterosexual men.

About 7,300 people were diagnosed with gonorrhea, up from over 6,800 in the same period last year. Syphilis cases increased from just over 800 to more than 900. A total of 90 individuals were told they had contracted HIV, the virus responsible for AIDS, a figure nearly unchanged from last year.

Healthcare providers detected fewer cases of chlamydia, likely because testing has decreased significantly. People are now only tested for chlamydia if they have symptoms themselves or if their regular partner has chlamydia and symptoms. Asymptomatic cases remain undetected, making the number of cases “not easily comparable with previous years,” the RIVM said.

Aidsfonds – Soa Aids Nederland warns that sexual health centers “cannot deliver care to enough people because of limited funding, which may result in STIs going undetected and untreated, and reduces insight into the true spread of infections.”