From 2020 to 2022, the incidence rates of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis have jumped in mainland France.
- An explosion in cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis infections has been observed in mainland France.
- Gonorrhea infections notably increased by 91% between 2020 and 2022.
- According to research leaders, the Covid-19 pandemic has slowed down screening activity for sexually transmitted infections.
An increase in cases of syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhea, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), was observed between 2020 and 2022, according to Public Health France. In a document published on December 12, researchers from Sorbonne University, Inserm, and the Pierre Louis Institute of Epidemiology and Public Health revealed their results, obtained from data from the Sentinels network.
A strong increase in STIs in France
In 2022, the incidence rate of chlamydia infections was 102 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, an increase of 16% compared to 2020. Gonorrhea infections increased by 91% in the space of two years with 44 cases per 100,000, and cases of syphilis increased by 110%, with 21 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
The report’s authors also noted that “cases with gonorrhea or syphilis had, compared to those with chlamydia infection, more multiple partners, more history of STIs, more co-infections with HIV and more taking of pre-prophylaxis -exposure (PrEP)”
The role of the pandemic in STI screening
As the researchers pointed out, STIs are a major public health problem “because of their transmissibility (to partners and mother-to-child), their frequency, the long-term complications they induce (chronic pelvic pain, upper genital infections, infertility, cancer, etc.) and their role in the transmission of HIV”. Screening is therefore essential to limit their spread and put in place appropriate care.
During the study, it was observed that the Covid-19 pandemic had a negative effect on the detection of these bacterial infections. Confinements have slowed down meetings with partners, but also screening activities. This slowdown in screening tests may have caused diagnostic delays as well as a drop in estimated incidence rates in 2020.
The authors of the study, however, indicated that the increase in STIs is not a recent phenomenon in France. Increases in cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis have been noted for many years, and could be linked to more intense screening activity. In addition to the Covid-19 pandemic period, screenings for STIs, particularly chlamydia and gonorrhea, doubled between 2014 and 2022. “The dynamic is therefore not necessarily worrying, because the increase in screening and diagnostics allows early treatment and control of their spread, which is good news.reassured Doctor Pascal Pugliese, president of the French Society for the Fight against AIDS (SFLS), at Figaro.
In conclusion, the specialists stressed the importance of continuing “efforts in terms of combined screening for all STIs (HIV, bacterial STIs, hepatitis B and C) in patients and their partners, in order to quickly start treatment and interrupt chains of transmission”.