The number of STI consultations at the Sexual Health Centres of the Municipal Public Health Services (GGDs) was 19% higher in 2022 compared to 2021. This is according to the new Sexual Health Monitor. A total of 164,715 consultations were held in 2022. This is the first time the figure has been higher than in 2019, the year before the COVID-19 outbreak. There were 150,782 STI consultations that year.
Increase not only due to PrEP pilot
The number of consultations at the GGDs was much lower in 2020 and 2021 because of scaled-down healthcare services as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. There were 105,936 consultations in 2020 and 138,436 in 2021. The increase in the number of consultations is not only due to the pilot with PrEP for men who have sex with men (MSM) and are at high risk of contracting HIV. As part of this pilot, the participating GGDs test them for STIs. There was also a slight increase in the number of consultations among women, heterosexual men and MSM who were not participants in the PrEP pilot.
High detection rate for chlamydia
Chlamydia was detected during 21.2% of the consultations with heterosexual men. The detection rate was also high among women in 2022, at 17.9%. In 2019, prior to COVID-19, the detection rate was 18.4% among heterosexual men and 15.3% among women. A notable statistic is that the increase in 2022 was only seen among people under the age of 25.
Increase in gonorrhoea cases
The number of gonorrhoea cases increased significantly, especially in the second half of 2022. There were 10,600 gonorrhoea diagnoses in 2022. This was an increase of 33% compared to 2021. The number of diagnoses rose sharply among women in particular, from 831 to 1,458. This was an increase of 75%. There was a strong increase among heterosexual men as well. The number of gonorrhoea diagnoses grew from 421 in 2021 to 666 in 2022. This was an increase of 58%.
The gonorrhoea detection percentage among women rose from 1.5% in 2021 to 2.3% in 2022. The detection percentage was even higher in the fourth quarter of 2022: 3.1%. Among heterosexual men, the gonorrhoea detection percentage rose from 1.8% in 2021 to 2.4% in 2022. The detection percentage was 2.9% in the fourth quarter of 2022.
Among women and heterosexual men, gonorrhoea was detected most often in the following groups in the last quarter of 2022:
- People under the age of 25
- People of Dutch origin
- People with a high level of education
About the Sexual Health Monitor
The Sexual Health Monitor is a half-yearly report on the most important figures and trends relating to STIs and sexual health in the Netherlands. These figures come from the Sexual Health Centres (SHCs). RIVM analyses the figures before publishing the report.