Sexually transmitted infections including gonorrhoea and syphilis have reached their highest levels in more than a decade across Europe, according to new data published by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the EU's public health agency. Gonorrhoea cases rose to 106,331 in 2024 — a 303% increase since 2015 — while syphilis more than doubled over the same period to 45,557 confirmed cases. The ECDC has called for urgent action, warning that widening gaps in testing and prevention are significantly driving transmission.

Among the factors behind the surge, health officials point to people waiting longer before seeking tests, as well as insufficient prevention policies in many countries. Spain recorded the highest number of confirmed cases among participating European nations, with 37,169 gonorrhoea diagnoses and 11,556 syphilis cases in 2024. In the Netherlands, gonorrhoea cases more than doubled from 6,826 in 2020 to 13,952 in 2024, while syphilis cases rose from 1,526 to 2,173 over the same period. In England, separate data showed 71,802 gonorrhoea cases and 9,535 syphilis cases last year.

Particular concern centres on congenital syphilis — infections passed from mother to newborn, which can cause lifelong complications — with cases nearly doubling between 2023 and 2024. Men who have sex with men remain the most disproportionately affected group, showing the steepest long-term rises in both infections. However, heterosexual women of reproductive age have also seen significant increases in syphilis, broadening the public health challenge.