"Gonorrhea diagnoses increased to 82,592 in 2022, an increase of 50.3% compared to 2021 ... This is the highest number of diagnoses in any one year since records began in 1918. Infectious syphilis diagnoses increased to 8,692 in 2022, up 15.2% compared to 2021 ... This is the largest annual number since 1948," the agency said in a statement.
Young people aged 15 to 24 years are more frequently diagnosed with sexually transmitted infections, with as many as 400 cases registered in the UK per day in 2022, the statement read.
In this regard, the agency stressed the importance of using condoms during sex and getting tested on a regular basis, so that doctors could identify diseases in their early stages and treat them in a timely manner.
"Testing is free and confidential and you should get tested even if you are not showing any symptoms," the statement added.
Even though the increase in both diagnoses is partly explained by the surge in testing, the scale of the spread of the diseases indicates that sexually transmitted infections are being increasingly transmitted within the population, the agency warned. Moreover, gonorrhea is becoming more resistant to antibiotics and might become untreatable in the future, the statement read.
Gonorrhea and syphilis are sexually transmitted infections. Gonorrhea can cause infertility and pelvic inflammatory disease, while syphilis can result in serious and potentially life-threatening problems with brain, heart and nerves.