Concern about cases of genital herpes

Press, 19 September 1985, Page 25

Concern about cases of genital herpes

PA Wellington The Health Department is concerned about the number of cases of genital herpes reported last year, at 968. New Zealand’s sexually transmitted disease (S.T.D.) clinics reported 673 cases of herpes in 1980. By 1983, the number of cases had risen to just over 1000. The department’s figures apply to first time attendees at S.T.D. clinics. Cases of genital warts treated by the clinics rose from just over 900 in 1980 to-

more than 1300 last year. The department said that as sexually transmitted diseases were not notifiable, the figures provided by hospital clinics and private laboratories should be regarded as indicators of trends only. Taking this into account, the department said that there had been a “noticeable decline” in the number of cases of gonorrhoea over the past five years. There had also been a slight decrease in the number of

syphilis cases. Although the number of penicillin-resistant cases of gonorrhoea in New Zealand was very low and all cases were acquired outside the country, if trends in Britain were a guide New Zealand would possibly develop its own such cases in the future. The department said it emphasised the need for testing for resistance to antibiotics and the “paramount importance of contact tracing.”