UK faces explosion of SUPER-STIs, resistant to all treatments – as expert blames Tinder, Grindr and cuts to sexual health services
THE UK must brace itself for an explosion of STIs that are RESISTANT to treatment, one leading expert has warned.
A "perfect storm" of a rise in casual sex and cuts to sexual health services is happening at the worst possible time - just as potentially dangerous super-STIs are on the rise.
The warning comes as a British bloke became the first in the world to catch a strain of gonorrhoea resistant to almost all antibiotics.
The two go-to drugs recommended to treat the STI proved powerless in this case, health officials warned, as were other common medications - the first time this has happened.
It raises fears that once-treatable and relatively harmless infections could prove killers in the not too distant future.
Sexual infections expert Peter Greenhouse told The Sun Online we are facing a "big problem", adding that this is going to become the norm.
He said experts have been predicting this apocalyptic-style scenario for ten years, but now it is "finally happening".
Dating apps such as Tinder and Grindr are making it easier for people to sleep around, he said.
And as a result sexually transmitted infections are spreading more easily.
In 2016, there were 420,000 STIs diagnosed in England, according to Public Health England.
Chlamydia made up almost half of those cases, while gonorrhoea was the second most common infection.
And rates of gonorrhoea - the STI most rapidly becoming resistant to antibiotics - are rising, up from 26,880 cases in 2012 to 36,244 in 2016.
"We have a perfect storm, just at a time when these infections are becoming seriously resistant to antibiotics," Mr Greenhouse warned.
"It is harder to get a sexual health check up and people are changing sexual partners much more frequently thanks to dating apps like Tinder and Grindr.
"When you multiply it together, you couldn't have planned a worst case scenario."
The unnamed man was struck down with "super gonorrhoea" after having sex with a woman in south-east Asia while he was on holiday, Public Health England revealed.
Mr Greenhouse said one old drug used years ago, was able to help clear the man's infection.
But, he warned, it is not that easy.
GIVE CLAP A SLAP Revealed... the signs that mean you could have gonorrhoea - everything you need to know about the STI
The man was lucky because he caught the STI from vaginal sex, or from the woman performing oral sex on him.
Had he picked it up from performing oral sex himself, the "super gonorrhoea" would have infected his throat.
Mr Greenhouse said: "The drug that was used in this case will not penetrate the throat at all.
"It wouldn't have worked.
How to tell if you have gonorrhoea...
GONORRHOEA is a sexually transmitted infection that in many cases shows very few signs.
Symptoms usually develop within two weeks of a person becoming infected, but around one in 10 men and half of women who are infected will not experience any obvious signs of the infection.
As a result, it is common for gonorrhoea to go untreated for some time.
In women, the symptoms include:
- an unusual vaginal discharge, which may be thin or watery and green or yellow in colour
- pain or a burning sensation when passing urine
- pain or tenderness in the lower abdomen
- bleeding between periods, heavier periods and bleeding after sex
In men, the signs include:
- an unusual discharge from the tip of the penis, which may be white, yellow or green
- pain or a burning sensation when peeing
- inflammation of the foreskin
- pain or tenderness in the testicles
"The reason the throat is so important is that although people condoms for regular sex, unless they are female sex workers, they don't for oral sex.
"And oral sex is the most common way gonorrhoea is transmitted."
Add into the mix the fact more people are changing sexual partners more rapidly thanks to dating apps, and it's easy to see how the infection could spiral out of control, Mr Greenhouse told The Sun Online.
"The things that determine how resistance develops in STIs is how quickly the infection spreads, and that's determined by the rate people are changing sexual partners.
"An extra problem is the only reasonable way to stop it is by getting more sexual health check ups.
"This really is the most stupid time for the Government to de-invest in sexual public health."
Mr Greenhouse warned the problem is likely to be most dangerous in London, where six major sexual health clinics have been forced to close in the last year.
The closures come as part of a planned move to online services rather than appointments with doctors in person.
While DIY tests that you post back to get results, are touted as a replacement, Mr Greenhouse said they are useless when it comes to detecting these more sophisticated, resistant STIs.
And he added home tests won't help detect HIV and syphilis, warning we could see a rise in the deadly diseases.
Dr Gwenda Hughes, head of the STI section at Public Health England, said the best way to protect yourself against these drug-resistant STIs is to practise safe sex.
She told The Sun Online: "It is better to avoid getting or passing on gonorrhoea in the first place, and everyone can significantly reduce their risk by using condoms consistently and correctly."
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