STI tsunami: England revealed to be worst hit in Europe for syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhoea as experts warn: ‘People could be left with life-long damage’
England is the capital of Europe for the number of sexually transmitted infections, new data suggests – surpassing 30 other nations in rates of chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis.
Figures published today by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) show the number of STIs across the continent reached record highs in the last decade.
The data lays bare the number of STIs across the 27 European Union member states – plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway – and shows gonorrhoea diagnoses soaring to 106,331 in 2024, the highest level since tracking began in 2009.
Syphilis cases also more than doubled that year to 45,577, while chlamydia remained the most commonly reported STI across the nations, with 213,443 cases recorded.
Worryingly, there was also a rise in congenital syphilis, where infection is passed from mother to baby during pregnancy or birth, with experts warning of the life-threatening complications this can cause.
All of the STIs recorded are most commonly spread through unprotected vaginal, anal or oral sex, and can lead to serious health complications if left untreated. They can, however, be prevented by using protection such as condoms.
While England was not included in the new analysis, comparisons with official data from the same time period suggest it would rank by some distance as Europe’s worst-hit nation for sheer volume of syphilis, gonorrhoea and chlamydia cases.
The Daily Mail’s interactive map shows the number of STI diagnoses across Europe, revealed in the newest data, alongside the 2024 statistics for England.
It shows that while Spain recorded 41,798 chlamydia cases in 2024, England logged 168,889 diagnoses.
Although England’s population is around 10 million larger, per-capita calculations from 2024 suggest England would still have recorded a far higher rate – around 288 cases per 100,000 people compared to just 86 per 100,000 in Spain.
Overall, however, the nation with the highest rate of chlamydia per capita was Denmark, with an astonishing 502.3 cases per 100,000 people.
England’s chlamydia diagnoses also surpassed other UK nations, with Scotland recording 11,725 diagnoses in 2024.
For gonorrhoea, Spain topped the European figures with 37,169 cases, ahead of the Netherlands with 13,952 and France’s 13,533.
In comparison, England almost doubled Spain’s total of gonorrhoea cases, recording 71,802 cases of the STI, which can lead to serious problems such as infertility in women, testicle or prostate infections in men or eye infections.
The figures are also worrying for Ireland, who had the highest per-capita rate of gonorrhoea, with 109 cases found for every 100,000 people.
Meanwhile, Scotland recorded 4,534 gonorrhoea cases in 2024, and Wales saw 3,204.
Bruno Ciancio, Head of Department at the ECDC, said: ‘Sexually transmitted infections have been on the rise for 10 years and reached record high levels in 2024.
‘Untreated, these infections can cause severe complications, such as chronic pain and infertility and, in the case of syphilis, problems with the heart or nervous system.’
The new data reveals that England was also ahead of Spain in the number of syphilis cases in 2024.
Official figures show 13,030 syphilis cases recorded in England, compared with 11,556 in Spain, 9,509 in Germany, and 3,420 in Belgium.
Malta had the highest prevalence per capita, however, recording 60.3 cases of syphilis per 100,000 people.
Sexually transmitted infections can be prevented by using protection such as condoms
Mr Ciancio said there was a ‘near doubling’ of congenital syphilis cases, which he described as ‘most distressing’ because it can lead ‘to potentially lifelong complications’.
While preventable with early testing and treatment during pregnancy, untreated congenital syphilis infections can result in miscarriage, stillbirth, premature birth, severe birth defects, or death shortly after birth.
In some cases, babies may show no symptoms at birth, only for complications to develop weeks, months or even years later.
Meanwhile, the new data also revealed a rise in lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV) – a rare STI caused by a strain of chlamydia bacteria.
Most commonly diagnosed among gay men, LGV can cause swollen lymph glands, rectal pain, ulcers, or sores around the genitals or anus.
LGV cases have risen sharply over the past decade, with Spain seeing 2,026 diagnoses in 2024 – making up almost 60 per cent of all cases recorded.
It is the only STI in the new data where England would not have topped the rankings if it was involved, with 1,252 cases found.
Mr Ciancio says ‘protecting your sexual health remains straightforward’ as he urged people to use condoms with new partners, and to get tested if you show symptoms ‘such as pain, discharge or an ulcer’.
While these figures suggest Spain has some of the highest STI totals across the 30 nations, the data has some notable omissions.
For example, statistics from Belgium, France and the Netherlands relied on sentinel surveillance systems – a method which doesn’t track every case of certain diseases, meaning their totals may not represent the true number of cases.
Several countries also did not submit complete data for all infections, with Germany a notable omission for three of the four STIs – only recording data for syphilis infections.
Still, experts say England’s STI burden is cause for concern. In previously published government guidance, transmission of gonorrhoea, chlamydia and syphilis – as well as genital herpes and genital warts – was described as a ‘major public health concern’.
England spends around £9.58 every year per person on sexual health services – equalling more than £560 million.
Last August, the NHS announced they would be rolling out a ‘world-first gonorrhoea vaccine programme’ which they say will protect thousands of Britons and save the NHS over £7.9million over the next decade.
