HPR volume 17 issue 6: news (8 June 2023)

Question 1

STIs and NCSP annual data release for England, 2022

Accepted Answer

New data on sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and on screening for chlamydia in England was published by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) on 6 June, providing comprehensive and up-to-date information on STI diagnoses, sexual health service provision and National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP) activity up to the end of 2022.

Commentary on the data for the calendar years 2021 and 2022 – and also some trend data from 2018 to 2022 – is provided in the annual report Sexually transmitted infections and screening for chlamydia: 2022 report which is published alongside the data tables on the official statistics webpage: Sexually transmitted infections (STIs): annual data tables. NCSP data is published on the official statistics webpage: ‘National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP): data tables’.

The STIs and NCSP data tables present breakdowns of diagnoses and tests (asymptomatic screens and symptomatic tests) by demographic characteristics and geographical region. Slide sets and an infographic are available (for use in presentations) summarising the STI data.

The data on diagnoses and testing is also available broken down by upper and lower tier local authority in England as part of the Sexual and Reproductive Health Profiles.

The report’s ‘descriptive analysis’ of the latest data highlights the following, most marked, changes in new diagnoses and testing and screening activity; in particular, that in 2022:

there was a total of 4,394,404 consultations at sexual health services (SHSs), an 8.2% increase compared to 2021 (4,059,608)
there were 2,195,909 sexual health screens (diagnostic tests for chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis or HIV) performed by SHSs, an increase of 13.4% compared to 2021 (1,936,455)
there were 392,453 diagnoses of new STIs among England residents, an increase of 23.8% compared to 2021 (317,022)
both gonorrhoea and syphilis have returned to the high levels reported in 2019 (prior to the COVID-19 pandemic) (see Figure 1)
gonorrhoea is increasing in people of all ages, but the rise is highest among young people aged 15 to 24 years (see Figure 2)
infectious syphilis (primary, secondary and early latent stages) is increasing both among gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men (GBMSM), and heterosexual people

Among the main infections contributing to this overall total of new STIs were:

chlamydia diagnoses (all ages) increased 24.3% from 160,279 diagnoses in 2021 to 199,233 in 2022
gonorrheoa diagnoses increased to 82,592 diagnoses in 2022, an increase of 50.3% compared to 2021 (54,961)
infectious syphilis diagnoses increased to 8,692 diagnoses in 2022, up 15.2% compared to 2021 (7,543)
first episode genital warts diagnoses decreased in 2022 to 26,079 (an 8.5% reduction compared to 28,497 in 2021)

The impact of STIs remains greatest in young people aged 15 to 24 years, GBMSM, and some black ethnic groups. Among young women aged 15 to 24 years screened through the NCSP:

690,531 chlamydia tests were carried out in 2022, a 1.2% decrease compared to 2021 (698,979)
there were 68,882 chlamydia diagnoses, an increase of 21.8% compared to 2021 (56,562); test positivity increased from 8.1% to 10.0% over the same period

Figure 1. Number of new diagnoses of chlamydia, gonorrhoea, genital warts, genital herpes (primary y-axis), and syphilis (secondary y-axis) among England residents accessing sexual health services, 2013 to 2022

Different scales are used on the primary and secondary y-axes.

Notes

Note 1. First episode.
Note 2. Includes diagnoses of primary, secondary and early latent syphilis.
Note 3. Figures reported in 2020 and 2021 are notably lower than previous years due to the disruption to SHSs during the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Source: Data from routine returns to the GUMCAD STI and CTAD Chlamydia Surveillance Systems.

Figure 2. Number of gonorrhoea diagnoses by age group, 2013 to 2022

Note 1. Figures reported in 2020 and 2021 are notably lower than previous years due to the disruption to SHSs during the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic.