Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are not exclusively a problem of young people.
Young adults in their 20s and 30s usually top the charts for common bacterial STIs such as gonorrhoea, chlamydia, and syphilis – but rates among those in midlife and beyond are climbing in parts of Europe.
According to a 2024 report from the United Kingdom’s Health Security Agency, there has been a “steady increase” in STI diagnoses among people aged 65 years and older in recent years.
There were 1,649 gonorrhoea, chlamydia, and syphilis diagnoses among older Britons in 2023, up from 576 in 2014 – a nearly threefold increase.
In France, meanwhile, gonorrhoea and syphilis incidence rose more sharply in people over 50 than in younger adults between 2021 and 2023. Chlamydia also rose among men over 50, according to the French public health agency.
In Denmark, men aged 50 and above saw some of the largest increases in gonorrhea cases from 2022 to 2023.
And across the European Union, people aged 45 and older accounted for 32 per cent of all syphilis cases in 2023.
Infections like gonorrhoea, chlamydia, and syphilis are bacterial STIs which can be cured with antibiotics, unlike herpes and HIV, which are lifelong viral infections, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Why are STI cases rising among older adults?
The uptick does not appear to be slowing down. According to a study from the University of Manchester in the UK, the number of STI diagnoses is expected to continue rising among older people in England through at least 2040.
The study authors said it is not clear what’s driving this trend, but that the ageing population and growing number of diagnoses could translate to rising treatment costs for STIs in the coming years.
Other experts say that because women often outlive men, they may look for new partners later in life.
Meanwhile, sexual performance drugs such as Viagra have given some older men a chance to re-engage in sex later in life.
Older adults may also have little knowledge about how different types of STIs are transmitted or how to prevent them from spreading, particularly given they are safe from the risk of unintended pregnancies, one small study concluded.
Destigmatising STIs in older adults
Experts say both health care professionals and the public should consider the sexual health needs of older people.
“There is a common misconception that older adults do not have sex, they don't want to have sex, or they cannot have sex,” said Matthew Smith, a Texas A&M professor focused on older adults’ health at Texas A&M University in the United States.
“And unfortunately, those misconceptions can lead to a lack of communication, a lack of speaking with health care providers, a lack of talking to partners about safer sex practices like using condoms or sharing partners,” he added.
Whether they are widowed, divorced, or simply seeking companionship, Smith said older adults should ask potential new partners about their sexual history, use of contraception, and STI testing – topics he said are “not necessarily something routine among older adults”.
Smith said doctors should also discuss sexual health with their patients, given “we are sexual beings across the life course”.
“It's something that oftentimes is shied away from, in conversation,” he said. “There's a little bit of stigma based on [their] age, where not everybody likes to envision that age group engaging in these behaviours”.
