Youngsters shun test for infection

RURAL communities across North Yorkshire are being blighted by a hidden problem of the UK’s most-prevalent sexual infection as young people are failing to be tested.

Health experts say thousands of 15 to 24-year-olds could be at risk of chlamydia as they are opting not to take part in screening programmes to detect the condition.

Senior officials from the primary care trust, NHS North Yorkshire and York, say many young people living in small countryside communities which have access to only one pharmacy or GP practice are less likely to get tested for fear of someone they know finding out.

Hundreds of people in the county as young as 15 have tested positive for chlamydia, which affects up to one in 10 of the sexually-active population and can cause long-term health problems including infertility.

A screening programme is now being rolled out across North Yorkshire in the hope that thousands more young people will come forward to be tested.

The medical director for NHS North Yorkshire and York, Dr David Geddes, said: “Chlamydia is a silent infection that can have serious long-term consequences. It can cause infertility and chronic pain in men and women. Because the infection is so common, it is important that young people take responsibility for their sexual health and have a chlamydia test from time to time.

“Because it can be embarrassing to ask for a chlamydia screen, we are encouraging our GP practice colleagues to offer a test to all their 15 to 24-year-old patients when they next visit the practice.”

MPs admitted last week that the Government has no idea if the national programme to drive down chlamydia infections is having an effect.

The latest report from the Public Accounts Committee said measures to check progress of the screening programme across England are inadequate.

Chlamydia is the most common bacterial sexual infection and more than half of all new cases in 2008 were among under-25s.

In England last year, nearly 60,000 people between 15 and 24 tested positive for the infection. A total of 15,900 young people in the 15 to 24 age bracket were screened in North Yorkshire; one in 12 tested positive.

There has been a dramatic leap in the number of cases of chlamydia in the county, from 100 in 1995 to nearly 1,000 in 2006.

With the extension of the National Chlamydia Screening Programme in the current financial year, NHS North Yorkshire and York is aiming to screen more than 20,000 young people. However, there are estimated to be up to 109,000 people aged between 15 and 24 in North Yorkshire.

About 50 per cent of men and between 70 and 80 per cent of women who get the infection will have no symptoms and many cases of chlamydia remain undiagnosed.

The screening programme involves a urine test, and anyone found to have the infection can be treated effectively with a course of antibiotics.

Anyone who does not seek treatment can endure long-term health consequences – women can suffer from pelvic inflammatory disease, an inflammation of the cervix, early miscarriages or the premature birth of a baby.

Men who have contracted chlamydia can suffer from an inflammation of the urethra, arthritis or epididymitis, which can lead to them becoming infertile.

The main provider of chlamydia screening services in North Yorkshire, YorScreen, is launching a new website, www.yorsexualhealth.org.uk, and can also be contacted by calling 01904 725440. Details of home tests are available by sending a text with the word “TEST” to 80010, followed by your name, address and age to request a postal pack.