25 Lakh People Dying From Sexually Transmitted Diseases Every Year Globally: WHO

A new report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) states that on average each year around 2.5 million people die from diseases like HIV, viral hepatitis, and sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

The WHO report informs that syphilis is spreading rapidly in the Americas and Africa. This is a thing of concern as syphilis can be cured. “The rising incidence of syphilis raises major concerns,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Fortunately, there has been important progress on a number of other fronts, including accelerating access to critical health commodities, including diagnostics and treatment. We have the tools required to end these epidemics as public health threats by 2030, but we now need to ensure that, in the context of an increasingly complex world, countries do all they can to achieve the ambitious targets they set themselves,” he added.

The sexually transmitted diseases which are concern for the WHO include:

STIs: Four common STIs (syphilis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia, and trichomoniasis) are spreading quickly, causing over 1 million new infections daily. All of them are treatable. There’s concern about strains of gonorrhoea that are resistant to most medications.

Syphilis: The rise in syphilis cases is partly linked to disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Viral Hepatitis: New cases of hepatitis B and C remain high, despite treatments being available. Deaths from viral hepatitis are also on the rise.

HIV: While new HIV infections are decreasing slightly, progress is slow.