The obvious thinking behind this accusation is that sites like these make having casual sex easier than ever before. With Grindr in particular, these representatives explain, you can literally find the person in the closest proximity to you, who is up for sex within seconds. They can be at your doorstep, or you on theirs, within minutes.

I am not personally down on these hook up apps, but certainly the fact they exist does heighten the urgency of practicing of safe sex right now. The steady increase of STIs reported year in year out, can only worsen the more available casual sex is to those who look for it. It’s possible that the knowledge that such a facility is out there also increases the number of partakers who otherwise might not have sought out casual sex.

With more sexual health campaigns on the go than ever, the greater access there is to STI treatments, and information at the touch of our fingertips, on our laptops, iPads and even our phones, it is a wonder that STI rates are still climbing steadily.

UK Medix carried out a recent survey including 1,967 people, half were men and half were women, in which they asked questions about STI contraction and, more specifically, where these men and women picked up the STIs they had treated in the past. Alarmingly, 15% said that they caught their STI at a friend’s house and 7% said they picked up their STI at work or in their office at work. Grindr and other such websites didn’t figure here but what is apparent is that people still aren’t having barrier-protected sex. Of those surveyed, on average, it was 8 weeks before participants were tested for STIs after the event, despite 61% saying that they were not using protection at the time.

Perhaps it is a common belief that because there is a pill for everything these days that an STI is part and parcel of a free and unencumbered sexual lifestyle. What most people do not think of are the life-long viruses and infections that stay with people for life after skin to skin contact, such as herpes, genital warts, HPV, and potentially deadly viruses like HIV and syphilis. Currently one third of people who have HIV in Britain don’t even know they have the infection.

STI kits are even available online these days via reputable sites, such as Superdrug or Lloyds Pharmacy . It is not even necessary to go and see a GP face to face. It is important to check that they are regulated sites and that the laboratories in question are legitimate operations, but there are many of these out there and treatment is often free with a negative result. Whether it’s Grindr or a greater social attitude to the treating of STIs, rates are still high and steadily increasing and some are getting more than they bargained for after unsafe sex.

CBP is an uncomfortable condition that results in the swelling of the prostate and causes urinary infections. It usually requires long term use of antibiotics in order to treat. It can cause blood to present in the urine or semen, burning and pain when urinating or ejaculating, with bowel movements too and can also cause pain in the lower back. If it is not treated serious problems can arise such as not being able to urinate, abscesses on the prostate and even sepsis, which is where bacteria gets into the bloodstream. For the Italian study, a group of men, half who had CBP caused by chlamydia and the other half whom had CBP caused by another urethral, bacterial infection, were compared. Premature ejaculation was discovered in approximately 37% of the first group and a mere 12% of the second group; a markedly disparate result.

Premature ejaculation has long been associated with the prostate considering the mechanism by which men ejaculate. Until now though, men who presented with CBP were not tested for chlamydia at all so the work carried out at Santa Chiara has proved innovative in this area.

Chlamydia left untreated also affects fertility in men and women and is a silent disease in that often no symptoms are present. It also means this sexually transmitted infection can pass from person to person easily and quietly. Those most at risk are in the 16 to 24 year old age bracket and these have been the statistics for a long time now according to the Health Promotion Agency (HPA), year after year. Perhaps now that it is known chlamydia is related to premature ejaculation, those testing for the infection and receiving treatment will be on the rise. Discoveries like these are reported all of the time proving that we do not yet know the full extent of what it means to leave an infection like chlamydia untreated. STI testing is free and confidential and should be carried out after any risky behaviour and before having sex with a new partner. Chlamydia is common but is dangerous and studies like these remind us to be extra vigilant about our sexual health. Please see this website for further information on chlamydia testing.

Further information can be found here.