Parts of the national chlamydia and gonorrhoea screening programme for 15 to 24-year-olds are being scrapped locally after NHS managers blamed ‘Government cuts’.

The life expectancy of people with HIV has increased by 15 years thanks to improved treatments over the past 13 years, a University of Bristol study has found.

The quadrivalent cervical cancer vaccine, Gardasil, is more cost-effective than its bivalent equivalent if the two vaccines were equally priced, concludes a study published today.

Diagnosis of the herpes simplex virus type 2 through serological testing does not cause long-term psychosocial harm in people who had no previous history of the virus.

Exclusive HPV vaccination is ‘likely’ to be extended to boys in order to boost protection from cancer and genital warts protection, Government advisers have told Pulse.

HPV vaccine helps protect women from anal cancer by preventing 84% of HPV infections in this area, according to research published in the Lancet.

The inclusion of HPV testing in the cervical screening programme will be run at a local level and save £16 million a year, according to a pilot study.

Increasing numbers of women are missing cervical cancer tests, as publicity around the disease dwindles.

The rollout of HPV testing in the national cervical screening programme has stalled in the planning stages, Pulse has learned.

Two new studies have added to evidence that some types of contraceptive pill carry a higher risk of serious blood clots than others.

Offering the opportunity to collect a self sample for HPV testing can uncover cancer cases among women who persistently fail to attend cervical screening, according to a UK study.

Young women are at increased risk of pelvic inflammatory disease if they have had chlamydia, are aged less than 20, are black, or have had multiple sexual partners, according to a UK-based study.

NHS bosses warned PCTs against saving money by suspending or tightening the criteria for couples to receive IVF services.

Quadrivalent HPV vaccine provides at least four years of ‘sustained protection’ against cervical lesions and substantially reduces the burden of disease, according to the results of two studies in the British Medical Journal.

The national chlamydia screening programme took a ‘major step forward’ last year as GPs ramped up the number of screens done in general practice, according to a report by the Health Protection Agency.

Teenagers and young women should be encouraged to stock up on supplies of the morning-after pill in advance in case of emergencies, NICE has advised.

HPV testing offers longer-term protection from cervical cancer than cytology and should be the primary method of screening, a study has concluded.

GPs will need to test patients for chlamydia after every change in sexual partner if the £100 million national screening programme is to have any real impact on rates of pelvic inflammatory disease, an evaluation concludes.

Fewer than 30% of women using a testosterone patch for hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) are being prescribed it within guidelines, drug safety researchers warn.

Exclusive: The future of enhanced services is under threat at many PCTs, with managers reviewing funding as part of plans to deliver millions of pounds in efficiency savings.

Local implementation of the chlamydia screening programme is ‘fragmented and inefficient’ and should be replaced with a nationally-run scheme, according to an influential group of MPs.

Local enhanced services in sexual health may be ‘perversely worsening’ the provision of care and creating inequalities in access, according to Health Protection Agency researchers.

Attempts to tackle the rise in chlamydia infections in young people are being met with ‘ignorance and indifference’ amongst the under-25s, according to the Department of Health.

The HPV vaccine Cervarix - used in the UK programme - is effective for about six years, and probably much longer, the final analysis of a long term study has found.

Miracle cures come thick and fast in today’s papers, from tooth braces which boost your hearing to a new jab to stop smoking from being addictive.

The Healthcare Protection Agency (HPA) may recommend a standardised system of payments to GPs for chlamydia screening amid concerns that the NHS is not getting value for money from the nationwide programme.

The Government has announced the launch of a pilot scheme under which practices will routinely test for HIV when registering new patients.

More than 12,000 reports of adverse events following immunisation (AEFIs) were reported by girls aged 11 and 12 who received the quadrivalent HPV vaccine in the US between June 2006 and January 2009.

A simple urine test for diagnosing chlamydia in men could help reduce the risks of persistent infection and transmission to sexual partners, the results of a BMJ study have found.

The number of gonorrhoea and syphilis infections in the UK has fallen, but cases of genital warts and herpes infections are up., the latest figures from the Health Protection Agency show.

The Department of Health has been accused of spinning the findings of an independent review on cervical screening in order to blame GPs for failing to spot women with the disease.

Adding in HPV testing to liquid-based cytology for cervical screening makes screening no more effective, according to data from the first randomised controlled trial into the combination.

The results of the first head-to-head trial of the two cervical cancer vaccines has shown Cervarix, used in the national vaccination campaign, elicits a better immune response in women than Gardasil.

Ministers are being urged to find a way of making HPV vaccination available to women aged 18 to 25 after its advisers concluded the move would be beneficial.

Ministers are drawing up plans to launch league tables scrutinising GP prescribing of contraception in a bid to cut rates of teenage pregnancy, Pulse can reveal.

GPs can now prescribe the erectile dysfunction drug tadalafil in a form of a once-daily pill, which its manufacturers claim will transform the lives of patients.

The Government’s national chlamydia screening programme is not only unsupported by evidence but may actually do more harm than good, a wide-ranging analysis warns.

GPs could be asked take on responsibility for HIV testing in a bid to tackle the increasing number of people in the UK who do not know they are infected.

GPs are having to repeat fewer cervical smears than ever before, the latest NHS figures show.

GPC negotiators and NHS Employers have moved to align the sexual health indicators in the QOF with NICE guidance on the provision of long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs) to women of child-bearing age.

New guidelines recommend that all 15-59 years olds should be offered HIV tests when joining a GP surgery in ‘high prevalence’ areas.

The number of people being tested as part of the national chlamydia screening programme is falling far short of what is required to make the programme a success, a new analysis shows.

The HPV vaccination programme is to be administered entirely by GPs in some parts of the country, after warnings some areas have too few school nurses to support a schools-based programme.

Oral antibiotics will be available without a prescription for the first time in a bid to stem the rise of chlamydia infections in young people.

Sexual health services in general practice have been the victim of chronic underfunding and a failure to engage GPs, a Parliamentary report warns.

GPs should be aware of a ‘triad’ of symptoms that are commonly missed in patients with early HIV infections – fuelling the rise in infection rate - researchers advise.

A stinging editorial in the BMJ this week has criticised the Department of Health’s decision to choose a bivalent rather than a quadrivalent vaccine for the HPV vaccination campaign.

A new review has questioned the assumptions on which the National Chlamydia Screening Programme is based, after finding an ‘absence of evidence’ for the assumption that the infection raises the risk of infertility.

The number of newly diagnosed sexually transmitted infections (STIs) rose again in 2007, with the highest rates reported among young people.

GPs are set to face intense pressure from PCTs to participate in chlaymdia screening after the Department of Health demanded NHS managers step up efforts to raise uptake rates.

GPs will need to take part in the HPV vaccination program if it is to achieve the levels of uptake required to make the programme cost-effective, pilot studies suggest.

HPV vaccination should be extended to cover boys as well as girls, says the BMA Public Health Committee, in a resolution passed at its annual conference.

Men recently emigrated from countries with HIV epidemics, like sub-Saharan Africa, should be offered circumcision on the NHS, says a leading public health expert.

Patients with sexually transmitted infections are being missed in primary care due to a lack of clear referral protocols, say UK researchers.

The Department of Health have announced a new push to encourage GPs to look beyond the pill and offer young women alternative, longer-acting contraceptive methods.

GPs will face increased pressure to take part in chlamydia screening this year as the Department of Health tries to shore up the flailing National Chlamydia Screening Programme.

A new 30-minute, point-of-care chlamydia test could massively improve coverage of the national screening programme, say UK researchers.

The BMA has issued a warning to patients about the dangers of buying prescription drugs from the Internet and called for prescribing restrictions on viagra (sildenafil) and other erectile dysfunction drugs to be relaxed.

GPs have reacted angrily to a report from a Government advisory group that has condemned their ability to provide sexual health services.

New figures show the number of sexually transmitted infections reported in the UK rose last year, despite Government campaigns to raise awareness of their dangers.

Chlamydia screening has stagnated in the fourth year of the controversial programme, amid calls from some LMCs to boycott testing unless GPs are reimbursed for the work.

GPs are missing a diagnosis of HIV in half of patients who consult during their period of primary infection, a new study concludes.

Prescribing of long-acting reversible contraceptives has fallen in the two years since NICE recommended they be used more often.

Health secretary Alan Johnson announced today that all girls aged 12 years old will be vaccinated against HPV from the beginning of the 2008 school year.

Half of GPs think that the agreement of just one doctor should be enough for an abortion in the first 14 weeks of pregnancy according to a new survey.

GPs need bigger cash incentives to deliver contraceptive and sexual health services, a group of MPs is claiming.

A row has broken out among leading researchers over whether a GP-led catch-up and booster HPV vaccination campaign will be needed.

A GP-led catch-up and booster campaign may be needed for HPV vaccination in older women, according to research by the Health Protection Agency.

The Government are planning a radical overhaul of the way sexual health is funded in primary care, Pulse can reveal.

Vaccinating twelve year old girls against human papillo-mavius (HPV) would meet NICE criteria for cost effectiveness suggests new Health Protection Agency research.

Male GPs give more certified sick leave to men than female GPs give to women patients, a study by GP researchers has found.

Women taking the contraceptive pill can be reassured that it does not increase their chances of developing cancer and may even reduce the risk, say UK researchers.

Calcium supplements, or calcium with vitamin D, can reduce fractures by up to 24%, according to a new analysis of 29 randomised trials.

Women with a history of sexually transmitted and other gynaecological infections who are not in stable monogamous relationships can safely use IUDs, a new study concludes.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has blamed a shortage of GP training opportunities for reductions in the number of women being prescribed long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs).

GPs have been urged to overcome 'shyness' to improve prevention of sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancies

Younger women are being left at risk by age limits on referral for postcoital bleeding, an analysis concludes.

GPs hit back as another report accuses profession of widespread bias against gay colleagues and patients

The National Chlamydia Screening Programme is struggling to build uptake to the levels required to combat infection rates and has been criticised for continuing to rely on the goodwill of GPs.

College response warns NICE proposals for GPs to counsel young people on sex would be counter-productive

Dr Margaret Safranek has had to give up her work in a family planning clinic because she has found it impossible to access compulsory update training.

GPs should be paid to carry out chlamydia screening, suggests a NICE review, which found little or no evidence that opportunistic screening is effective, writes Joanna Clarke-Jones.