BY RÓISE COLLINS
CASES of gonorrhoea in Donegal have risen by close to 500 per cent in recent years.
Sonya Keeney is the Clinical Nurse Manager at the Sexual Health Clinic in Letterkenny University Hospital. She told the Donegal News that there has been a massive rise in Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) across the county.
Since 2019 there has been a staggering 475 per cent rise in gonorrhoea in Donegal. The biggest rise in the STI has been seen amongst young people in the county, aged between 20 and 25 years old.
Cases of chlamydia have also risen by 21 per cent in the same period.
In the first quarter of 2023, the staff at the Letterkenny based clinic have seen the number of cases of gonorrhoea and chlamydia reach levels that would have been seen in six months in previous years, Ms Keeney revealed.
Ms Keeney said that a three pronged approach is needed to tackle rising STI cases. This includes educating people on prevention, encouraging them to get checked and promoting the use of condoms.
Ms Keeney stressed the importance of using a condom for all forms of sex, including oral sex.
“Most young people don’t even think about using a condom for oral sex, because they are not being educated about it.”
In Donegal there has been an increase in young women presenting with chlamydia in their throat.
Using a condom during oral sex prevents STI’s in the throat, which is symptomless in majority of cases.
“More than 90 per cent of people who have gonorrhoea and chlamydia in their throat do not know they have it.
“Even if they do have a bit of a tickly throat they would never know they have an STI, this can then be passed on very easily,” said Ms Keeney.
Everyone who visits the clinic is educated on the importance of using condoms, focusing on prevention but also postvention. The method of postvention used in the clinic helps to prevent the onward transmission of infection.
If left untreated these STIs can pose serious medical concerns in the future, including fertility problems, or pelvic inflammatory disease in women and testicular problems in men.
Ms Keeney explained that gonorrhoea and chlamydia can be easily treated with an antibiotic treatment. There are antibiotics and antivirals available for the treatment of all STIs except for HIV.
She said that anyone who has symptoms needs to get checked immediately, whether that’s through their GP, our clinic or SH:24.
SH:24 is a free online STI home testing kit that was introduced in Ireland in 2020.
The service has helped to reduce waiting times at the clinic. It also made the staff aware of the scale of infection in the county.
If you have unprotected sex or if you have changed partners you need to get checked, and if you have multiple partners you need to get routinely checked for STIs.
Ms Keeney recognised that some people might find it difficult to come forward for testing, she assured them that there is full confidentiality and anonymity at the Sexual Health Clinic.
Patients do not have to use their names, the clinic will not contact the patients GP unless they ask and the visit will not be included in their hospital or GP notes.
If you have concerns or would like to book an appointment you can contact the Sexual Health Clinic on (074) 91 23715, where the staff will be more than happy to help.
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