Four STIs – syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and trichomoniasis – account for over 1 million infections daily
A new report from the World Health Organisation has flagged a rise in sexually transmitted infections, setting global targets for their reductions, back by a significant extent.
HIV, hepatitis and other STIs cause 2.5 million deaths each year, according to a new WHO report – Implementing the global health sector strategies on HIV, viral hepatitis and sexually transmitted infections, 2022–2030. “The rising incidence of syphilis raises major concerns. Fortunately, there has been important progress on a number of other fronts including in accelerating access to critical health commodities including diagnostics and treatment. We have the tools required to end these epidemics as public health threats by 2030, but we now need to ensure that, in the context of an increasingly complex world, countries do all they can to achieve the ambitious targets they set themselves,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
In many parts of the world Four curable STIs – syphilis (Treponema pallidum), gonorrhea (Neisseria gonorrhoeae), chlamydia (Chlamydia trachomatis), and trichomoniasis (Trichomonas vaginalis) – account for over 1 million infections daily. The report notes a surge in adult and maternal syphilis (1.1 million) and associated congenital syphilis (523 cases per 100 000 live births per year) during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, there were 230 000 syphilis-related deaths.In 2022, around 1.2 million new hepatitis B cases and nearly 1 million new hepatitis C cases were recorded. The estimated number of deaths from viral hepatitis rose from 1.1 million in 2019 to 1.3 million in 2022 despite effective prevention, diagnosis, and treatment tools. New HIV infections only reduced from 1.5 million in 2020 to 1.3 million in 2022.
An estimated 55% of new HIV infections occur among five principal groups – men who have sex with men, people who inject drugs, sex workers, transgender individuals, and individuals in prisons and other closed settings. About 76% people living with HIV are currently getting medication to suppress viral loads, WHO noted.