New figures have been released by the Health Protection Agency today reporting on the UK population’s sexual health of 2009 and the focus seems to be primarily on those aged between 15 and 24, with women coming out as the most affected. In addition, there is an even greater risk than before regarding gonorrhoea and its growing resistance to current treatments.

Since 2008, 12,000 more cases of sexually transmitted infections than last year were reported giving us a total of 482,696 cases reported in UK sexual health clinics in 2009. It follows that two thirds of the STIs in women were represented by those under the age of 25. In the case of chlamydia, women under 25 make up 88% of those infected. For gonorrhoea, 73% of the women infected were under 25 and 66% of women infected with genital warts were of this age group also.

With men, the results are similar in that over half of the infections were contracted by men under the age of 25. For gonorrhoea, 41% of the infections were from men of this age group and in the case of genital warts, 47% of men of this age were represented. Furthermore, a massive 69% of the men infected with chlamydia were below 25. Last year, of the men and women in this age group who had contracted an infection, one in ten of them contracted an infection within a year after their treatments.

There is a huge focus here on the under 25s however, they have been targeted by the NHS for special attention so we would be staggered if there were not more under 25s presenting for testing so this obviously means that a higher proportion of the total figure will be comprised of people in this age category. Educating the middle aged is hugely important as STIs are on the rise in that group as well. With higher divorce rates and couples breaking up after years together, it is possible that in their new sexual relationships, that they are not practising safe sex and are just as responsible for the spreading of these infections.

Unprotected sex and ignorance regarding STIs is not only increasing the volume of people infected, it is now possible that we will not be able to treat certain infections in the future. The HPA report confirms an increase in drug resistance in the treatment for gonorrhoea. This is already one of the most common STIs and it is on the rise, having increased by 6% between 2008 and 2009. Overall, there were massive increases in the numbers contracting STIs with chlamydia having increased by 7% and genital herpes by 5%.

It is so easy to get tested these days so there is really no excuse. If you click through to our Sexual Health page, there are details on how to order a test online, with results from the laboratory in as little as 24 hours.>

Experts at St. Helen’s GUM clinic have warned us that a cocktail of sun cream, sand and sex on the beach is a recipe for disaster. If you are heading on a late summer holiday this year, you don’t want to get more then you bargained for. According to the health experts here, after the holiday season, they see a huge increase in the number of sexually transmitted infections. And this is not just as a result of risky encounters with one’s summer fling. St. Helen’s Health Improvement Team would like to remind young people that cosmetics like sun cream, after sun and lip gloss all contribute to making the condoms less reliable due to the oil content of the products we slap on during the holiday period. Even when you are playing it safe, you need to be extra careful. The oil damages the rubber, rendering it less protective. Washing your hands and genitals after using such products will prevent this damage to the condom.

The STIs observed by the St. Helen’s GUM Clinic every summer, include, chlamydia, gonorrhoea, genital herpes, genital warts and syphilis with chlamydia being the most popular of the STIs especially among the 18 to 24 year olds. Chlamydia is the most dangerous of these considering it is often symptomless and there is a possibility of becoming infertile if it is left undiagnosed. If diagnosed however, chlamydia is easily treated. The other STIs are not good but they do normally produce symptoms (not always however) so at least they have a higher chance of being detected and dealt with.

It is so easy to get tested and it is even easier to use protection in the first place. Summer loving doesn’t seem so romantic when you have contracted something nasty downstairs.

The number of STIs reported has continued on an upward trajectory in recent years, with 16 to 24 year olds representing the age group most affected. They only make up approximately 12% of the population and yet they represent 50% of the diagnosed STIs in the United Kingdom. We have new figures out from the Health Protection Agency next week and we will report these as soon as we have them.

Cash incentives might be the answer to the problem of sexually transmitted infections in Tanzania. Studies have been carried out on how best to prevent the spread of HIV and other infections in African countries and a recent study by the researchers of the University of Berkeley in California, the Development Research Group of the World Bank and the Ifakara Health Institute in Tanzania, showed that offering a cash incentive of $60 (the equivalent of one quarter of the average salary for one year) in exchange for the efforts of the participants to steer clear of STIs, significantly reduced the number of infections. They are not sure whether this incentive reduced the level of unprotected sex or reduced the amount of individuals having sexual intercourse. Although the researchers (for ethical reasons) could not associate the cash incentives with HIV, the results strongly suggest that while reducing the risk of spreading diseases like chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis, they could also be inhibiting the spread of the HIV virus.

The group of males and females (18 to 30 years) were randomly separated into 3 groups including a no payment control group, a low payment group and a high payment group. The individuals in the paid groups were given their negotiated payments when they tested negative for STIs and counselling sessions prior to and post testing were offered in order to teach individuals more about their sexual behaviour. The low payment group showed the same number of infections as the no payment group at the end of the study, suggesting that the size of the incentive matters. The experiment will be repeated next year and now a larger study is being considered. With this, there are hopes surrounding the possibilities for cash incentives slowing the HIV epidemic in Africa.

After the news that erectile dysfunction drugs have been linked to rising rates of sexually-transmitted infections amongst the over-40s, an alarming new report has indicated that there has been a huge jump in the number of over-60s contracting HIV.

The number of new cases recorded across Britain has risen by 60% over the past 7 years, going from 299 new cases in 2000 to 710 new cases in 2007. Older adults made up 8% of all new HIV diagnosis.

The research showed that older, straight adults were likely to have contracted the infection in the UK, though there was evidence that a significant number of white, heterosexuals were picking up the illness while abroad.

Half of the new cases were only diagnosed ‘late’, making an early death far more likely.A late diagnosis is defined as when the CD4 white cell count is less than 200 cells per cubic millimetre of blood. In a healthy adult, the CD4 count would be 600 or above.

While anti-viral medications have made life expectancy for those living with HIV in the West almost that of a healthy adult, late diagnosis significantly reduces a patient’s chances of survival.

A senior scientist at the Health Protection Agency, Ruth Smith, warned that nearly half of older adults who tested positive became infected when they were over 50, highlighting the need for sexually active adults to get regular sexual health check-ups whatever their age.

A new study has shown that amongst the heterosexual population, poverty rather than race is the most important factor in determining infection rates of HIV.

Released today, the data suggests that HIV is becoming an epidemic in certain particularly poor neighbourhoods. More importantly, heterosexuals with low incomes were more likely to contract the infection that homosexuals with money living in the same area.

It has long been suspected that poverty plays a crucial factor in increasing rates of HIV infection in the West and in the developing world, where clearly poverty has hampered access to education services, protection and medication.  However this is the first time that scientists have examined the relationship between poverty and HIV in the west.

The team involved used a survey taken in 2006 and 2007 of 9,000 heterosexual adults, who did not use intravenous drugs. They discovered that 2.4% of those living below the poverty line were carrying the infection, compared with 1.2% of people from the same neighbourhoods who made more money than the federal poverty guideline.

However, both groups had higher infection rates than the national average, attributed to the fact that they were living amongst higher numbers of people carrying the infection. Lead scientists Dr Jonothan Mermin, of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, said that this was sheer ‘bad luck’, as in those particular communities new partners were more likely to be infected.

The FDA has issued a license to Beach Tree Labs for an investigational new drug (IND) for the treatment of oral herpes to be progressed to Phases 1 and 2a. The active ingredient has also been approved as an IND targeting the influenza virus.

Around 80% of the population carries the herpes simplex virus that causes oral herpes, with around 20% of the population expressing symptoms as a cold sore. Herpes simplex II that causes genital herpes is less common but can be more severe, with around 25% of the population being infected.

Once infected with herpes, you have it for life. Some people will never have symptoms again after the first outbreak and others will be plagued with outbreaks for most of their lives. There are medications such as aciclovir, which can be used to suppress the symptoms or deal with outbreaks and the antiviral drugs available are very effective but any new medicinal weapons for our armoury are very welcome.

A recent study in The Netherlands has called for swinging (the practice of couples sharing sexual partners at sex parties) to be categorized in a similar way to other sexual practices (such as paying for sex) to establish a risk profile. The study in the South Limberg area of the country, which has a population of around 630,000, examined statistics from sexual health clinics over a period from 2007 to 2008. Of the 8,971 consultations for Chlamydia and Gonorrhoea, around 12% were for swingers who had an average age of 43.

The swingers came in third after young heterosexuals and homosexuals in the study and there was a higher incidence of infection in female swingers than in males.

This study helps to explode the myth that sexually transmitted infections are the preserve of the young. At The Online Clinic, we have been aware for some time of the growth in STIs in the middle-aged population based on the patients that we deal with. We have also advocated a wider coverage of this subject in the mainstream media to make people aware of the risks as many people still assume that STDs are not something that are likely to affect them later in life, even if they remain sexually active.

Sexual health checks are easily accessible either on the NHS or privately. Health checks for the most common infections (including Chlamydia and Gonorrhoea) are available online and The Online Clinic can treat anyone who has had a positive result, making this sensitive area as discreet and private as possible. We recommend The STI Clinic for postal STI tests. Their tests go through an accredited laboratory and most results take as little as 24 hours.

A new study has shown that not only is obesity damaging health-wise, but it also seems to have a strong negative impact on sexual behaviour.

French researchers have shown that women who are obese are less likely to ask for advice on contraception or use the pill. They were also more likely to have unplanned pregnancies, despite having fewer sexual partners than those who did not have weight problems. The rate of unplanned pregnancies was 4 times higher amongst obese women than in the rest of the group. Obese women when compared to the women of normal weight were 30% less likely to have had a sexual partner over the past year.

Men who were obese reported a higher incidence of erectile dysfunction. However though they were engaging in sexual contact less, they were more likely to contract a sexually transmitted disease.

Overall, data was collected on the sexual behaviour of over 12,000 French men and women.  From this group, 1010 women  and 1488 men were overweight and 411 women and 350 men were obese.

Lead researcher Nathalie Bajos, research director at Paris’ National Institute of Health and Medical Research and professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said that obesity strongly influenced people’s sex lives.

She said that the research had revealed that social stigma meant obese women were more likely to find sexual partners online, as they were ‘not comfortable meeting men through friends, through work, through parties’.

She also noted that doctors were less likely to prescribe and discuss contraception with the women.

Dr. Sandy Goldbeck Wood, who wrote the accompanying editorial in the British Medical Journal , urged that the data be treated with cautious interpretation. She said that more needed to be understood about how obese people feel about their sex lives, though the complex biological, psychological and social factors would require a qualitative research approach.

The sexual health charity the Terence Higgins Trust has warned that British pubs and clubs need to get ready for the world cup – by making sure that their condom machines are working.

The charity has warned that previous large sporting events have tended to increase the demand for condoms. During the Winter Olympics, 8,500 condoms had to be airlifted as a matter of priority, as despite 100,000 condoms being stockpiled for the event, the Olympic Villages still ran out (this might have something to do with the Villages being rumoured to be a hotbed of scandal and gossip each Olympics....)

THT have predicted that this summer’s World Cup will be no different and as part of a campaign called ‘Scoring without getting an own goal’ they are asking the managers of pubs and clubs to take sexual health into account, making sure condom machines in the ladies and gent’s are fully stocked to protect their customers.

The singer Beverly Knight is supporting the campaign and has said that bar staff can make a real difference and make sure that their punters are safe throughout the tournament. She added that nothing would ‘put you off your game’ worse than an unplanned pregnancy or STD and urged people to ‘make safer sex sexy again’.

Health experts have warned that urinary tract infections are becoming increasingly hard to treat, as the bacteria that cause them become resistant to antibiotics.

Scientists from the University of Hong Kong believe that antibiotics are being overused in the farming industry, causing resistant genes to be passed down the food chain from animals to humans.

They examined the bacteria Escherichia coli particularly, as it is responsible for the majority of UTIs,along with Ureaplasma Urealyticum and Gardnerella Vaginalis. When they examined samples from humans and animals, they discovered that antibiotic resistance was present.

In approximately 80% of the samples, the gene aacC2, which encodes resistance to the antibiotic gentamicin, was present. The samples were only from one area of the world, Hong Kong, but it is thought that further tests in other areas worldwide would show similar results.

Dr. Pak-Leung Ho, who lead the research, warned that international trade in meat and cattle meant that if resistance developed in one region, it could easily become global. He advised that authorities need to monitor the transmission of resistance more closely.

There are fears that even if one country cracks down on antibiotic resistance, global travel and trade means that will negate those efforts, meaning that united global action is the only solution.

There has also been research published indicating that the sexually transmitted infection gonorrhoea is becoming resistant to antibiotics, a story we have been monitoring closely.

A rather alarming report has reached us from the World Health Organization, which suggests that Gonorrhoea may soon be untreatable because of the overuse of antibiotics. The research is based on findings in Pacific Rim arms of the agency in Hong Kong, Australia and Japan.

Gonorrhoea is has proved resistant to front line antibiotics in some areas of the world for some time and it is now showing resistance to cephalosporin antibiotics, which are the final line of defence against the bacterium.

Gonorrhoea normally causes symptoms in men within 7 days of contracting the infection but around 10% of men do not show any symptoms at all. Immediate signs of an infection are not always present in women. Primary symptoms include a discharge along with pain in the urethra when passing urine. Longer term effects include pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy and infertility. Men sometimes get a swelling of the scrotum.

Gonorrhoea is very easily detected from a urine sample and most cases that are diagnosed in the UK are treated successfully using Cefixime. A postal STD testing service is available from The STI Clinic and the treatment is included in the price of the test.

Scientists believe they have developed a technique which will allow ultrasound to be used as a male contraceptive.

Preliminary results from a study at the University of North Carolina have shown that when therapeutic pressure is used in rats, sperm production was halted temporarily, with no long-term effects on health or fertility.

The team, lead by Dr. James Tsuruta, has theorised that if men receive pressure from an ultrasound to the testes for ten to 15 minutes, then they could be protected from unwanted pregnancy for up to 6 months.

They have said that they hope that equipment already found in sports medicine clinics for treatment of conditions such as scar tissue which has developed after a breakage could be used to provide a long-term, reversible and inexpensive contraceptive.

The ultrasound seems to disable the sperm cells, reducing the supply of stem cells which ordinarily replenish sperm reserves. It is unclear why the effects last for 6 months, when usually stem cells take 2 months to develop into functioning sperm. It could be that the testes automatically make the stem cells divide and multiply when sperm is low, rather than develop into sperm cells. It is also possible that the ‘nurse cells’ involved in sperm production are affected by the ultrasound.

The research team has been awarded a grant worth $100,000 from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which invests very heavily in research into sexual health and contraception, to continue with the development of the treatment.

They will be trying to discover the lowest intensity of ultrasound needed to stop sperm production before starting trials on humans.

Generally, the last thing most people want to hear is that an ex-lover has a sexually transmitted infection. “Hey....remember me...you should probably get yourself checked out” is sentence we all dread hearing.

Well, that’s how normal people feel. Even if there’s no chance you’re infected, generally responsible members of society don’t wish STIs on anyone, regardless of how bad the break-up was or how long running the feud has been.

It seems there’s a lot of abnormal people out there. Hence the creation of a new service named ‘Crab Revenge’. Yes, just as it sounds, the website sells public lice ‘to give to your ex-girlfriend or whoever has p***** you off.’

Those with serious mental health issues can choose from three packages, from a ‘single crabs colony’ of roughly 30 eggs for £13.99 to 30 F-strain lice, at £34.99. which are apparently ‘almost impossible to get rid of’.

The company is positioning itself in the revenge market as the smart revenge method ‘that does not involve permanent damage or risk of personal injury or jail time’. Which begs the questions, how many people consider revenge that is so violent they could lead to prison or serious personal injury?

Despite their tagline, “Make that b**** itch ”, the site does have a disclaimer that says they do not endorse giving people lice, recommending that purchasers of the bugs “take care of them, give them cute names and most importantly love your lice like they are their own.”

It’s just so many levels of wrong that my head is spinning! The internet, for all its wonders, can also be a truly terrifying place. We’ll leave you with a testimonial from their website, by Jessica from Somerset: “Beats the hell out of hate mail."

US scientists have announced that they have taken a crucial step towards understanding why some people have natural immunity to HIV.

There are a very few people who may contract HIV, but in whom the virus will only progress very slowly or not develop at all when they are exposed to it, as their bodies are better at making white blood cells to fight the virus. The team studied a group of such people, who are known as ‘elite controllers’.

They discovered that the gene that these individuals share, known as HLA B57, encourages the body to make killer T cells, the cells in the body that fight infection. The gene was first discovered in the late 1990s, and is thought to be present in about every 200 people who are infected with HIV.

The white blood cells can make people more susceptible to autoimmune diseases, which occur when the body’s immune system starts working against itself.

The research was carried out with the help of computer modelling, which map how T-cells develop in the thymus.

Though the discovery is a huge step forward, the team, lead by MIT professor Arup Chakraborty and Harvard’s Professor Bruce Walker, say that any vaccine that results from the findings will take at least a decade to reach doctors on the ground.

As the disease is causing devastation in many parts of Asia and Africa, while the vaccine is the dream in the meantime huge energy is being devoted to finding better treatments and funding prevention and awareness programs.

The full study is published in the journal Nature.

South Africa has launched the world’s largest ever HIV testing program, in an attempt to aggressively cut down on the extremely high rates of the infection in the country.

The testing program is supported by politicians at the highest level, with President Jacob Zuma saying publically that he had been tested and was negative. The President has come in for criticism over his polygamous lifestyle, which many have said sets a bad example in a country that has been ravaged by AIDS. Mr Zuma once told a court that he had unprotected sex with an HIV-positive woman and has fathered at least 20 children by a variety of different women.

His move to get tested has been greeted positively by the UN’s Aids Agency Unaids, whose head Michael Sidibe said that while previously the biggest problem facing healthcare professionals in SA was that the doors were closed, now the ‘context has completely changed’.

He added that he hoped that the move by the government to push for HIV testing would encourage neighbours in Swaziland, Lesotho, Angola and Mozambique to follow a similar policy.

There were also calls for South Africa to change how they procure anti-retroviral drugs, as at the moment they pay significantly more than other nearby countries, as they prefer to purchase the medication from local suppliers.

South African authorities hope to get more than 15 million people tested for HIV before 2011 and subsequently to ensure that at least 80% of South Africans who require treatment receive the necessary anti-retroviral drugs.

Some 5.7 million people in S.A, out of a population of 48 million, are believed to be HIV positive, making it one of the countries that have been worst hit by the epidemic.

Scientists studying the sexually transmitted infection chlamydia have called for women to get routinely tested for the infection every time they have intercourse with a new partner.

In a study of 2,500 students, the team concluded that annual screening for the infection was not sufficient to prevent women developing pelvic inflammatory disease, a possible complication of the infection which can lead to infertility.

The team said that when chlamydia was correctly diagnosed, it cut the risk of a woman developing pelvic inflammatory disease by 80%. However since the infection is frequently present without symptoms, getting regular tests is often the only way to detect the infection.

In the study, sexually active females aged between 16 and 27 at various colleges and universities in London were asked to get swabbed at the starts of the trial to check for pelvic inflammatory disease.  The test was then repeated a year later. Chlamydia tests were also done.

The findings suggested that PID was most common in women who initially tested negative for chlamydia at the start of the study, indicating that an annual test was not enough to protect women against the potential side effects of chlamydia.

Scientist Pippa Oakeshott, also a GP, said that the results has lead her team to conclude that women should get chlamydia tests everytime they have a new partner and that women should also routinely be screened for gonorrhoea.

The Chlamydia National Screening Program has praised the research, published in the British Medical Journal.

While certainly we support the proposal and believe that if people took better care of their sexual health, society as a whole would benefit. We will, however, be very surprised if the study makes any difference to policy.

Most local health authorities struggle to get young adults to get tested once a year, with many routinely missing the targets set by the National Screening Service, so it seems like a long shot to hope that women can be pushed to follow the recommendations.  

New figures have suggested that men are twice as likely as women to test positive for chlamydia, but are significantly less likely to get tested and treated for it.

Lloyds Pharmacy have released the statistics after commissioning a survey to test the sexes' different attitudes to sexual health. The survey appeared to show that men are far more cavalier about their sexual health, with 13% reporting that they had had unprotected sex with more than one person during the last five years. Only 7% of women admitted to the same thing.

Similar figures showed that 13% of men tested positive for chlamydia, compared with 6% of women. However, though they are statistically more likely to have a positive test, nearly three quarters of the men surveyed said that they had never had an STD test.

Lloyds have suggested than men are likely to wait to have a test until they notice symptoms of a sexually transmitted infection, meaning that it is likely that many men are carrying an infection but are unaware. Chlamydia and gonorrhoea can be present in someone’s body but not produce any symptoms. In men this is unusual with gonorrhoea however, which tends to cause symptoms in 90% of men who are infected.

If left untreated, both infections can cause long-term problems, including infertility.

Facebook has had to defend itself today against suggestions that it is responsible for a fourfold increase in cases of Syphilis in the UK.  The accusation comes from Professor Peter Kelly who is director of public health at NHS Tees, which covers communities in the North East of England. Professor Kelly has stated that his research has found links between people infected with Syphilis and the use of Facebook and other social networking sites.

Facebook has vigorously defended its position after the accusation that people who use the social networking site meet up with their friends  for casual and unprotected sex. A spokesman for Facebook said that its site is a place for friends, family and co-workers to connect and share information.

I am sure that some people have used Facebook to make contacts for casual sex but there are plenty of “dating” websites out there that are much more likely to lead to casual encounters and the spread of STDs, so pointing the finger at Facebook seems a little bit unfair and at the end of the day, it is up to individuals to take sensible precautions no matter where they meet their sexual partners!

The 60s as often described as a time of free love, promiscuity and general good times all round. But now it seems that the current generations are having more sexual partners than their mothers.

Research has shown that the average 24 year-old has had 6 partners, compared to women of the sixties who were likely to have had 3.72 partners. Lloyds Pharmacy commissioned the study to demonstrate how the increase in sexual partners has put women at greater risk of contracting a sexually transmitted infection like chlamydia.

A spokeperson for the pharmacy also pointed out that despite better screening for cervical cancer, the rates of cervical cancer in under-25s has not declined, possibly because women are having more sexual partners and so are more likely to catch human papilloma virus, linked to the majority of cases of cervical cancer.

Cervical cancer affects around 3,000 women a year, though only 50 cases of the illness each year are in the under-25 age group. Cancer charity Jo’s Trust warned that there needed to be caution before ascribing any cause to the relatively stable rates the of cancer in young women.

Incidences of sexually transmitted infections like chlamydia and gonorrhoea however have been steadily rising and have been attributed to an increase in the number of sexual partners, as well as ignorance of the prevalence of STIs and indifference to the risks of unprotected sex.

A new study has mapped out a person’s sexual life expectancy, with an average man of 30 years able to look forward to a further 34.7 sexually active years and a woman 30.7 years.

The study examined data taken from a variety of surveys involving over 3,000 people. In one, 84% of men aged between 57 and 64 had been sexually active during the previous year, regardless of whether they were married or living with someone. 62% of women said that had been sexually active.

When older people were asked, those in the 75 to 85 age bracket, the number fell to 39% of men who said they had engaged in sexual activity, compared to 17% of women. 71% of the men who were sexually active said that they were having good sex, with again a lower number of women (51%) saying the same thing.

Almost 50% of those who took part in the survey said they felt they were in excellent health and those who were feeling well were twice as likely as those in poor health to be sexually active.

It was suggested that men stay sexually active for longer because they tend to marry younger women. It was also pointed out that women tend to outlive their partners, meaning that while men in their 70s and 80s may be with their partners women at the same age are more likely to be widows.

A new sexual health study has indicated that British women are neglecting to get themselves tested for HIV.  It is hoped that this new research will act as a ‘wake-up call’ to women in Britain, particularly to the 63% of the participants who believed that they did not need to get tested because they were in a long term relationship.

The study by the Mac Aids Fund was developed to investigate British women’s attitudes towards condoms. The results were worrying; with 82% of British women admitting to having sex without a condom, and a further 35% claiming that they trusted that their partner did not carry the HIV virus.

Despite the fact that cases of HIV and AIDS have tripled in the last ten years a total of 62% of those interviewed claimed they did not consider the disease to be a threat in their community.

Nancy Mahon, executive director of MAC Aids Fund expressed her concern at the findings and claimed that the results indicated the divergence between the perception of the disease and the reality of its prevalence in the UK.

The lack of condom use in Britain has also led to an increase in other sexually transmitted diseases. Cases of gonorrhoea, genital herpes and syphilis have all risen in number in the last decade as have cases of the symptomless condition Chlamydia.

A high profile advertising campaign highlighting the risks of unprotected sex is currently airing on TV and is hoped to raise awareness of the importance of practising safe sex to young people in Britain.

Health officials have said that a change in strategy in fighting HIV could be the key to beating the spread of the life-threatening illness.

They have suggested that testing most of the world’s populations for HIV, or ‘blanket testing’, could see the virus dying out within 40 years.

The plan could see people offered twice-yearly tests for the sexually transmitted infection, with those testing positive immediately put on anti-viral treatment for the rest of their lives. The suggestion comes after clinical trials showed that blanket prescription of ARVs, or antiretroviral drugs, could stop transmission of HIV and halve the number of cases of AIDS-related tuberculosis within 10 years.

Treating patients with ARVs within a year of their diagnosis can not only prevent the HIV from becoming full-blown AIDS, but can reduce the transmission of the virus tenfold, which eventually could force the virus to die out.

Scientists are planning to launch large-scale trials of the new strategy in Africa and the US, results of which will decide whether the plan will be adopted as public health policy. It is thought that in South Africa alone, the cost to implement the program would be between $3bn and $4bn per annum.

Speaking to the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Brian Williams of the South African Centre for Epidemiological Modelling and Analysis said that he believed that when all costs were factored in, the cost of the antiretroviral drugs would be considerably less than the cost of treating HIV-positive patients for the diseases they eventually develop, only for the patients to eventually die.

He said, “The only thing that’s more expensive is not doing this”, pointing out that young adults in the prime of their life were dying at the moment when they could be contributing to society.

They say abstinence is the best way to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted infections and for 1 in 4 women over 35, they are certainly playing their part to keep the STI rates down. A survey has revealed that over 25% of UK women over 35 ‘never’ have sex.

Scotland had the highest proportion of women who don’t ever make love (38%) while in the Midlands 32% of women say they have sex once a week.

The high proportion of women who don’t engage in sex was partly explained when most women said that working every day impacted on their sex lives. It was discovered that the less women work, the more they enjoy their sex lives, with 2/3s of those working part time reporting regular orgasms, compared to just over half who work full time.

Childless women were more likely to have a greater number of orgasms than mothers. 41% of women with no children said that they orgasmed most of the time, falling to 12% for those with one child and 14% for those with two.

26% of women said they were concerned that the menopause would cause them to lose their sex drives, as well as affecting their memory.

The survey was commissioned by Sky Real Lives as part of the launch of their new TV show, The Secret Guide To Women’s Health. Fronted by Colleen Nolan, of the exquisitely annoying Iceland adverts,  the show hopes to provide a platform for women to discuss the health problems they can’t talk about with friends (there seems to be a bit of flawed logic going on there – oh, no, of course most people would rather talk to Colleen Nolan on national TV if they are too embarrassed to speak to their best friends.)

Though scientists were disappointed by a study that showed that the herpes drug aciclovir did not prevent the transmission of HIV from person to person, hope has been raised that the medication could delay the progression of the illness.

Researchers published the results of a study involving 3,3000 African patients in The Lancet, which showed that the easily-accessible anti-viral reduced the risk of the illness progressing by 16%.

Previously studies had shown that aciclovir reduced the levels of HIV in the blood but there was uncertainty as to whether this could slow down how quickly the virus takes hold.

Though they were restrained about the results, calling the effect ‘modest’, the team said that as the treatment was relatively cheap it could be a useful way to help patients with the infection stay health for as long as possible, until they get access to HIV-specific antiretrovirals.

Scientists were encouraged to test the relationship between the herpes treatment and HIV by the fact that in Africa, the majority of patients with HIV also are carrying the Herpes Simplex II virus, also known as genital herpes.

The study saw participants receive either a twice-daily dose of the medication or a placebo and they were monitored for 2 years. By the end of the study, 284 people taking the medication had either seen their CD4 count drop, indicating they should be on antiretrovirals, or had died. This was compared to 324 patients in the placebo group.

While HIV treatment using antiretrovirals is far and away the most effective way to slow the progression of the illness, the team suggested that acyclovir could provide another treatment option, perhaps for patients not yet eligible for antiretroviral treatment.

The herpes medication acyclovir does not diminuish the risk of transmission of the HIV virus, according to a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The conclusions were based on results from a 5-year, international clinical trial. Researchers had hoped that as preliminary studies had shown that acyclovir could decrease the amount of HIV in the blood and urinary tract, this could translate into a reduction of HIV transmission.

At the moment about 90% of people with HIV are thought to be also carrying the HSV-2 virus, which causes herpes. HIV is not only transmitted through blood and bodily fluids but through the ulcers that are associated with genital herpes. People with the Herpes virus are also thought to transmit the HIV virus more effectively.

The study, led by scientists from the University of Washington and funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, involved 3,408 couples, one member of whom had HIV, one who did not. Across 14 countries in Africa, the results showed that there were 43 new infections amongst the group given acyclovir, and 41 amongst the group given the placebo.

The difference was ruled to be too small to be statistically significant, proving that the herpes anti-viral medication did not make a difference as to whether someone was more likely to contract HIV. The scientists also discovered that the Herpes virus attracts immune cells called CD4-T to the genital region, what can make it easier for an infection to establish itself or be passed on.

The Government has come under fierce attack by the Public Accounts Committee in the UK Parliament for the way that the execution of the national Chlamydia screening programme has been carried out in England. Detection rates have not reached the levels set down by the Government and as a result there appears to be no demonstrable reduction in infection rates. This latest criticism follows an earlier report by the National Audit Office, which slammed the programme as a waste of public funds.

Chlamydia is known as the silent infection as it can cause little or no symptoms but can cause serious health complications, including infertility, if left untreated. In 2008 there were 210,000 diagnoses of Chlamydia in the UK. Although testing rates have been pushed up to 16% in the year 2008-09 from 5% in the previous year, experts warn that this is nowhere near the level that it needs to be to halt the rise in infection rates.

Chlamydia is easily detected and very easily treated with antibiotics such as Azithromycin or Doxycycline but there is resistance to getting tested as people think that this is an issue that does not affect them. Most people assume that if they do not have any symptoms then they cannot possibly have a sexually transmitted infection but this is simply not the case.

Getting tested could not be easier these days. Even if you do not have time to go to your local GUM clinic there is a free postal service available in some Primary Care Trust areas for people under 25. If you do not qualify for free testing then there are a number of private clinics in the UK that provide a highly reliable laboratory screening service by post for very reasonable costs. We normally recommend The STI Clinic as they have a 24 hour results service and they pay for your treatment if you test positive for anything. Do yourself a favour – get tested just to be sure.

A debate within the medical community in the United States is beginning to take hold regarding the vaccination of boys against HPV. Girls are regularly vaccinated in the US and UK using either Gardasil or Cervarix because of the high risk of developing cervical cancer.

The HPV family of viruses can cause genital warts and some types of cancers, including but not limited to, cervical cancer. The virus is spread through skin to skin contact. Gardasil has been licensed in the US for treatment in boys to protect them against genital warts and penile and rectal cancers. Although Gardasil is not licensed for this purpose in the UK, some doctors are prepared to prescribe it “off license” for these purposes. Most of my reasonably well off gay friends have been to a private clinic in Harley Street to have the Gardasil vaccination as MSM (men who have sex with men) tend to be more prone to rectal cancers. Many people who have had the vaccination and who previously suffered regular outbreaks of genital warts have recorded a noticeable improvement by way of a reduction of outbreaks.

The debate going on in the US on this subject relates to cost in relation to benefits. The benefits are clear: men who have been vaccinated will be protected against certain of the human papillomaviruses that cause genital warts and certain type of cancers but moreover, they will not be passing the virus on to female partners which would otherwise put them at a higher risk of developing cervical cancer. The question is would a mass vaccination policy contribute in a meaningful way to the overall incidence of high risk HPV infections that can cause certain types of cancers? Where you can afford to pay the large cost of this vaccination then it is a “no brainer” but from a public policy perspective in the UK, there is no way that this sort of mass vaccination programme for boys will ever be sanctioned.

Our sister clinic www.thesticlinic.com launched a new initiative – the STIQ Day. The day was launched to raise awareness of sexually transmitted infections and the importance of regularly getting checked for them and is supported by the Terence Higgins Trust and Mates condoms.

No one likes to think they might have caught something, but the awareness day is designed to encourage people to take the smart route and get checked regularly, before an infection has a chance to damage their health.

The number of people catching a sexually transmitted infection has been rising regularly over the past decade.  It is estimated that 1 in 10 people under 25 are carrying Chlamydia, while experts have been warning that the older generation are not immune either. More and more people starting new relationships in later life means that more and more over-50s are catching infections.

Chlamydia and Gonorrhoea, two of the most common sexually transmitted infections in the UK, are easily treated but when left undiagnosed they can damage fertility. It seems obvious that getting checked out is infinitely preferable to more serious health problems later on but far too many people still don’t go for regular checks.

We’re really pleased this day has been created to raise awareness of the issue and hope that people will be encouraged to visit their doctor, local GUM clinic or go online for a test. To read more about the day, The Sun newspaper has written an article about it, or you can visit the website – http://www.stiq.co.uk

A major trial of a new gel that scientists hoped would reduce the risk of HIV infection in women has produced disappointing results, showing that it did not significantly reduce infection rates.

The trial saw 9,385 women in four African countries given either the vaginal microbicide or a placebo gel. Previously a smaller trial had suggested that the gel could reduce the risk of catching the disease by up to 30%.

However the Microbicides Development Agency, a not-for-profit partnership of 16 African and European research agencies, failed to show the gel was any kind of effective protection. As the trial was so large, the results can be considered conclusive.

The results will be a huge disappointment for HIV workers in Africa, where infections rates amongst women are extremely high. In sub-Saharan Africa, women are the most badly affected by the AIDS epidemic, with 60% of those infected believed to be female.

Women in Africa are at particularly risk of infection as they are frequently forced to take part in unsafe sex, as well as being biologically more vulnerable to infection than men. It had been hoped that a gel the women could apply themselves could offer them much needed protection, even if they could not convince their partners to use a condom.

Though the gel did not work, the women who took part in the study were given free condoms and access to counselling about safe sex.

The lead researcher on the study, Dr. Sheen McCormack, described the results as ‘disheartening’  but said that the trial itself showed the importance of large trials that offered definitive results about the efficacy of a product.

As experts faced with the huge AIDS infection rates in Africa and Asia admit that condoms alone have not managed to halt the spread of the virus, scientists will continue to search for a vaccine and other ways of preventing its transmission.

Today, the world is marking World Aids Day. While the disease has become a crisis in Africa and Asia, it is often overlooked that HIV and AIDS are also a grave concern for Western countries. In the UK alone, 80,000 people are living with HIV in the UK and infection rates are going up each year.

Experts believe that a quarter of people living in the UK with HIV are still undiagnosed. While the gay and bisexual community are still the most affected groups, straight people are still at risk of contracting the infection and rates of infection amongst this group are increasing.

Unfortunately, the stigma attached to HIV in the UK that it is a ‘gay’ illness means that many straight people do not consider themselves to be at risk and are less likely to get regular HIV tests, crucial if they have had more than one partner , unprotected sex or have casual sexual partners.

Black and minority communities are especially at risk, with 2,790 new diagnosis made this group, more than the 2,760 new cases reported amonst men who have sex with men.

Thankfully however in the UK patients have access to the best treatment. Whereas once HIV was seen as a death sentence, now those who take appropriate anti-viral drugs can enjoy life expectancies only a small amount less than the UK average. Quick diagnosis is crucial as the sooner treatment begins the longer the overall life expectancy – so getting more people to go more regularly for an HIV test is of paramount importance.

The same is not true of Africa and Asia. The majority of the 33.4 million people living with HIV are from those continents and in 2008 there were 2 million deaths. Anti-viral medications are frequently difficult to come by in developing countries and millions of children have already become ‘AIDS orphans’, after both their parents died of the disease.

Today, governments across the world vowed to do more to eradicate the AIDS epidemic. In South Africa, where up to 20% of the adult population are infected, President Jacob Zuma promised that all infected children under 1 would receive treatment for the disease and committed himself to extending treatment to pregnant women. Gordon Brown and David Cameron recorded a message in support of the day, while the EU called for a strengthening in the response to the disease.

Our sister clinic The STI Clinic is a proud sponsor of World Aids Day and we hope that you will buy and wear a red ribbon. You may also want to consider donating to the National Aids Trust or to Avert, who work in the developing world supporting communities in their fight against the disease.

Over the last 30 years, the sexually transmitted infection syphilis has fallen off the radar somewhat. However new Scottish figures have shown that levels of the infection are the highest they have been for 56 years.

As part of a report into the sexual health of the nation, Health Protection Scotland and the Information Services Division (both part of the NHS) released data showing that in 2008, 264 cases of the infection were diagnosed, 15 more than the previous year. This is the highest annual total since the mid-fifties.

Over the past 5 years, the number of diagnosis at GUM clinics has risen by 28%. The figures also showed that despite the 15-25 age group only representing 13% of the Scottish population, they accounted for 75% of all cases of chlamydia.

Gonorrhoea was also on the rise, with 1,644 people diagnosed with the infection at their local GUM clinic. This was a 6% rise on the previous year and there was an even bigger increase of 30% in the number of cases diagnosed in women.

One of the report’s authors, Dr. Lesley Wallace of Health Protection Scotland, said that the results showed that there needed to be a shift in sexual behaviour, with an increased emphasis on safe sex and regular sexual health check ups. He added that this was especially important for those with new partners or those who had casual sexual partners.

The Scottish minister for Public Health Shona Robison said of the report that they knew that STI rates were increasing and that ministers were planning on working with the NHS to ‘drive down’ the rates of STIs and improve education about safe sex.

Two of the biggest pharmaceutical firms this week took the unusual move of pooling their HIV treatments. The new group has been named Viiv Healthcare and was formed by Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline.

Viiv will take over GSK’s collection of HIV medicines, which are becoming slightly outdated (one otf their biggest sellers Combivir is due to lose its patent in 3 years) and Pzifer’s new and largely untested drugs. The chief executive of Viiv Dominique Limet described the newer medications as the ‘key driver’ for growth.

At the moment, Viiv has 11 marketed medicines and 7 different molecules.The large part of the start-up money, £250 million in total, has been contributed by GSK and they will be the major shareholders, with 85% of the equity However this equity split could change depending on which company’s research and products deliver the most profit. The drugs in Pzifer’s portfolio are likely to be profitable if they go successfully through clinical trials.

Dr Limet said that he has not ruled out making a public offering of the company in the future, but this will depend on the shareholders. He added that as the structure of the company is unique in the industry due to the size of the two companies involved, the priority at the moment was making the structure work.

He concluded that access and affordability of HIV drugs was a priority and said that the “challenging landscape” of HIV treatment made new research a priority.

Look at any of the slew of adverts for perfume, make-up or clothes and the message coming across is very clear – thin equals sexy, erotic and desirable. However, good news has been announced for everyone packing a few extra pounds – bigger men and women are apparently better in bed.

The newspapers have been using this as a fantastic excuse to compare skinny and curvier celebrities, with the Mirror running the headline, “Kelly Brooke is better in bed than Cheryl Cole!” (conjuring up images of a staff writer desperately trying to kid himself his knowledge is based on personal experience rather than lustful conjecture).

In a study commissioned by bedmakers Silentnight, 89% of men said that they preferred curvier sexual partners to  thin women. Of those men, 56% of them said that they thought partners with curves were more considerate about pleasing them when in bed.

Furthermore, when the romping is over, you’re more likely to sleep better if your partner is curvy. During the two-year study, it was discovered that thin people toss and turn up to 10 times a night on average, whereas those who are heavier only turn over twice.

It is thought that this is due to thin people suffering more from their pressure points being triggered while they sleep, decreasing their circulation and forcing them to turn more often to relieve the pressure.

The company’s sleep scientist Iftikhar Mirza commented that curvy men and women ought to be ‘feeling pretty happy right now’ as not only were they considered good in bed but were also better to sleep next to.

A new study, published in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections, has shown that men who use Viagra or other erectile dysfunction medications may be more likely to have the condom break during sexual intercourse.

The researchers recruited 440 men who used condoms when having vaginal sex who also used medication to help them achieve an erection. The volunteers were recruited using newspaper and internet advertisements and asked to fill in questionnaires about their most recent sexual experience.

1 in 10 of the men had used an erectile dysfunction treatment on the occasions and for 12% of those men the condom broke, compared to 5% of men who did not use medication. The researchers also discovered that men who reported having intercourse for longer were also more likely to report the condom having broken.

When the results of the questionnaire were analysed to take into account other factors, it was discovered that erectile dysfunction medication remained a significant factor in the condom breaking. Men using treatments like Viagra were up to 4 times more likely to have this happen to them.

The team who lead the study have suggested that the results may be due to Viagra and other similar medications causing increased swelling when a man achieves an erection, possibly causing the condom to be tighter. They have said that men using medications might be advised to use condoms large enough to accommodate the enhanced erection and warned that longer-lasting sex might be associated with condom breakage.

However there is some doubt about the results as the same team did a similar study last year, where 7% of the respondents used an erectile dysfunction drug, but no increased likelihood of condom breakage was noted.

The researchers have called for there to be further investigation of the possible link between prophylactics failing and the usage of impotence drugs.

Hopes have been raised that scientists have come closer than ever before to developing a vaccine for the HIV virus. A team say that they have created the first experimental vaccine that cuts the risk of infection considerably.

It is a combination of two earlier vaccines, with Sanofi-Aventis’ ALVAC HIV used as the primary vaccine and AIDSVAC B/E as the booster. It was trialled on 16,000 people in Thailand in the largest ever HIV vaccine trial. The results showed that the patient’s chances of contracting HIV were reduced by nearly a third.

The trial was overseen by the Thai authorities, with support from the U.S military, and received a large amount of funding from the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases as well as the US army . Thailand was chosen as the site of the trial due to the high rate of HIV infection in the country, as well as their developed medical infrastructure and strong commitment to the project.

The trial started in 2003 and was an extremely complicated project. 60,000 people were initially interviewed before 16,402 people were chosen to take part. By the end of the trial, 0.8% of the trial group had contracted HIV, which included 52% of people who had received the vaccine and 74% who had not.

The scientists are still unsure about the mechanism of the vaccine, as it did not seem to reduced the viral load of HIV in those who were vaccinated. There is also uncertainty over how the vaccine affects someone’s likelihood of contracting the infection in the long-term and over how effective it is in particularly high risk groups, such as intravenous drug users, men who have sex with other men and prostitutes.

The HIV vaccines product manager for the US army called the trial results the first evidence of a safe and effective vaccine being available and the hope has been expressed that the trial could encourage new donor funding and interest from companies working in the field.

Lloyds Pharmacy has developed a new ‘online calculator’ which enables people to calculate the number of indirect sexual partners they have had over their lifetime in order to educate people about the risks of unprotected intercourse.

Despite the fact that men claim to have had an average of 9 partners, and women an average of 6.3, experts warn that by having unprotected sex people are exposed to the sexual infections of literally hundreds and thousands of other people.

The online calculator, humorously called Sex Degrees of Separation, uses data collected from more than 6000 British adults. The way it works is that when people enter the age range of each partner, the calculator uses its database to work out how many previous sexual partners people within that age range have had on average. This process is then repeated for five further ‘generations’ of partner. When these numbers are added together they give a ‘sex degrees of separation’ total.

Research by the The Health Protection Agency suggests that cases of sexually transmitted infections rose by half a per cent to 399,738 last year. This coincides with an increase of eight per cent in Chlamydia between 2006 and 2008.

The head of sexual health at Lloyds pharmacy Claire Kerr believes that people should be aware that when they have unprotected sex with one person that they are, in effect, sleeping with that persons previous partners, and the previous partners of those previous partners and so on.

She added that the simple way to avoid exposing oneself to the dangers of sexually transmitted infections is to use condoms and to get regular sexual health checks when necessary. This is particularly important because the majority of STI’s are easy to treat but, when left untreated, can lead to serious health implications in the future.

The connection between unhealthy living and erectile dysfunction has long been highlighted by the medical community and the media. However, new research from The Second University of Naples has established that women should be wary too due to a strong link between high cholesterol and female sexual dysfunction.The research found that women who had high cholesterol had not only their general health affected but also their ability to be sexually aroused. High cholesterol, also known as hyperlipidemia, causes arteries to get blocked restricting the flow of blood around the body. As with men, women need an increase in blood flow to their sexual organs in order to achieve good sexual functioning.