2023-11-02 17:57:24
New concern about sexually transmitted infections (STIs), with numbers on the rise across Europe, with Italy being no exception. Updated data and studies will be at the center of the IX National Congress of the Interdisciplinary Society for the study of sexually transmitted diseases (Simast), which will be held in Turin on 3 and 4 November. After a physiological decline in 2020, where data collection was conditioned by the pandemic, 2021 saw a recovery in STI cases – according to a note – which resumed a growth trend as in previous years. There are various causes: improved diagnostic sensitivity, high transmissibility of viruses and bacteria, little prevention.
“The alarm over the spread of sexually transmitted infections concerns first of all syphilis and gonorrhea, but not only – underlines Marco Cusini, president of Simast – Syphilis is the most widespread sexually transmitted bacterial infection in Italy and its curve is constantly increasing, with a growth of 15% in the last year, especially among males who have sex with males (MSM).Gonococcal infection is the second sexually transmitted disease in the world after chlamydia: recent data show a 40% increase in many European countries such as Denmark, Sweden, Ireland, Holland and are also comparable to Italy”.
“The increase in the female population under 25 is especially striking – continues Cusini – which demonstrates how it is expanding even outside the population most at risk (MSM); in this sense, the role of sex is increasingly relevant in transmission oral. Among the growing trends there is also Monkeypox, the so-called monkeypox: after the peak in spring 2022, the epidemic cannot be said to be over, with reports of cases in several European countries including Italy”.
To combat STIs there are some forms of prevention, while in the case of risky relationships, early diagnosis remains fundamental. “In addition to the vaccinations already available for some time for Papilloma virus and Monkeypox, whose effectiveness and safety are recognized, there are other vaccinations in various experimental phases – underlines Cusini – For gonorrhea we could have a vaccine already in one or two years, while they predict longer times for syphilis, chlamydia and herpes”.
Prevention “is also achieved with an intervention on relationships at risk that can be identified with screening, even if the subjects at risk are often not easily reachable. This has opened the doors to self sampling, a self-assessment test that can be sent via post to specialist centers and which has spread in Italy since the pandemic – continues President Simast – However, for an effective result, a network is needed that monitors the correct execution of the test and allows a treatment path to be started in case there is a infection. Another relevant data concerns the growth of STIs in patients with HIV infection: the benefits for HIV deriving from U=U (those who have undetectable levels of HIV in the blood do not transmit the virus) and from PREP (prophylaxis pre-exposure with antivirals) could have caused a relaxation of attention in the prevention of STIs and, consequently, an increase in cases”.
The IX National Simast Congress entitled “Sexually transmitted infections and sexual health: an inseparable bond”, will be held in Turin on 3 and 4 November at the AC Hotel Torino By Marriott. Over 300 specialists and other healthcare workers involved in STIs were present, including infectious disease specialists, epidemiologists, dermatologists, gynecologists, urologists, but also nurses and figures such as psychologists and sociologists. The location in Turin is not accidental, given that the multidisciplinary Center for Sexual Health (Cemuss) is located in the Piedmontese capital, a structure that covers the entire territory of the Region; Dr. Sergio Delmonte, president of the Congress, leads Cemuss.
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