HEALTH - STI (Sexually Transmitted Infections)
Page Index
Introduction
It's a sad fact, that infections and diseases which were prominent when King Henry the Eighth was on the throne are still with us today. STI's or Sexually Transmitted Infections are still an issue, especially amongst young people, and for that reason, we have included some information about them in this section of BEST Advice.
All children now receive sex education at an early age as part of the PHCSE curriculum and you can find out more about that in either the PHCSE section of BEST Advice, from the relevant Government Education websites or from your child's school.
The maxim of "Safe Sex" is a very important one as contraception not only reduces the risk of unwanted pregnancy, but equally as important, reduces the transfer of sexually transmitted infections and diseases, which are on the increase, especially amongst young people.
Chlamydia is the most commonly seen STI, followed by genital warts, and although Syphilis is far less common than it was 20 years ago, it is still around and reported cases are on the increase.
STI Statistics
To give you a better perspective on the problem here are some figures which have been taken from the Government's own Office of National Statistics.
Sexual Health - Teen infection almost doubled during 90s
Between 1991 and 2001, the number of new episodes of sexually transmitted infections seen in Genito-urinary Medicine (GUM)
clinics in England, Wales and Northern Ireland doubled from 669,291 to 1,332,910. Young people, in particular females under the age of 20, bear the burden of sexually transmitted infections.
Genital infection with Chlamydia trachomatis, if untreated, is associated with pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) in women and infertility. The diagnostic rate of genital Chlamydia infection in females aged under 20 years old has increased since the mid-1990s. In 2001, the highest rates of diagnosed Chlamydia seen in GUM clinics were among 16- to 19-year-olds (1,035 per 100,000 females).
Genital warts are the most commonly diagnosed viral STI. In 2001, 29 per cent of females diagnosed with genital warts were under 20 years of age, compared with only 10 per cent of males in the same age group. Rates of diagnosis among females aged 16 to 19 years increased by more than 15 per cent during the last decade and reached 680 per 100,000 females in 2001.
Conception rates for female adolescents
In 2000, the conception rate among females under 20 years was 63 per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19 years. 
This marks a decrease in conception rates over the last decade that mirrors a general decrease among females of all ages. The exception, however, has been among females aged 13 to 15 years. Rates of conceptions in this group have remained consistent at between 8 to 10 per 1,000 females from 1990 to 2000.
The proportion of conceptions terminated by abortion among under 20-year-olds increased slightly from 36 per cent in 1990 to 39 per cent in 2000. Over half (51 per cent) of all conceptions among under 16-year-olds resulted in a termination in 1990 and this increased slightly to 54 per cent in 2000. Legal abortion rates were highest in London and the West Midlands in 2000 and 2001.
The sexual health of adolescents in the UK is poor. It is likely that an increase in risky sexual behaviour has contributed to sexual health outcomes such as STIs and unwanted pregnancy among young people.
(Crown Copyright. Reproduced from, and with the kind permission of, The Office of National Statistics.)
The Current Trend
Although these figures are ones published in 2004, two things are certain, STI infection rates are rising and more young people are getting infected.
Early teen pregnancy is also on the increase. In what is now Central Bedfordshire in 2004 under-18 conceptions were recorded at 124. In 2006, the last year data is available, this rose to 148 Worryingly, the steepest increases in the number of individuals accessing HIV-related treatment and care services between 2000 and 2004 was seen outside London, specifically in Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire, South Yorkshire and Leicestershire, and Northamptonshire and Rutland SHAs.
Chlamydia, a sexually transmitted infection with serious long term health implications for women continues to be a major health issue amongst young people. National figures show that in 2007 74% of women who screened positive for the infection were aged between 16 and 24, and 6 out of 10 positive screens come from the same age group. National figures published by the Child & Maternal Health Observatory show that in 2007 / 2008 only 4.1% of sexually active 15 to 24 yr olds were screened for Chlamydia.
Nationally, the peak age group for contraceptive clinic attendance was 16-19, based on the rate per 100 population; and an estimated 20% of women in this age group visited a clinic during the year. The equivalent figure for 15 year olds and under is 8%. Information about sessions held by NHS community contraception clinics for young people has been collected since 1994-95. The number of sessions held has more than doubled from about 21,000 in 1997-98 to 44,000 in 2007-08. The number of young people attending has also risen from 260,000 in 1997-98 to 472,000 in 2007-08.
Types of STI
There are four general types of sexually transmitted infections:
- Viral - Genital warts, Herpes, HIV, Hepatitis
- Fungal - Thrush
- Bacterial - Chlamydia, Syphilis, Gonorrhoea, Cystitis
- Parasitic - Pubic Lice
So, to find out more about the various types of STI, how they manifest themselves, how they can be treated and how young people can avoid them, click on the PDF links below. You can download Adobe Reader from the home page of BEST Advice.
More Advice
For help and advice if you think that you or someone you know has contracted a sexually transmitted infection, then the following document will give you some tips as to exactly what to do.
What to do if the worst has happened?
For more information on these topics, click on the link to the NHS Choices medical advice website.
For information on safe sex, try: