STI Conference in Saint-Pair-sur-mer: Prevention, Screening, and Taboos - Expert Insights

2024-01-09 06:00:03

Young people and their parents are welcome to this conference on STIs, sexually transmitted infections, which takes place in Saint-Pair-sur-mer, near Granville, in Manche.

The aim is to remind people of what these STIs are, but also and above all to discuss prevention and screening methods.
It is led by the infectious disease specialist Emmanuel Piednoir, from the Avranches-Granville hospital center who takes stock for France Bleu

Are sexually transmitted infections increasing or decreasing?

RISING !

“It is an observation that we are making, there are more infections such as bacterial diseases, for example syphilis or chlamydia infections. We see more of them than a few years ago? For HIV it is not over either, a few thousand people are still diagnosed each year in France.

Preventive messages, effective or not?

NOT COMPLETELY

“It must be believed that adherence to prevention messages is not yet optimal; it is likely that young people use less means of protection such as condoms. But not only young people, it does not only concern 18-22 year olds but also people in their forties and fifties**.**”

Are STIs still a taboo??

OUI !
Because sexuality, and the illnesses linked to it, still remain a taboo subject in many families.
There is always a need for a booster shot, notes Emmanuel Piednoir, who also regularly intervenes in schools. “ I was struck by questions like “Can you get an STI when you first have sex?” I have had this question several times, which shows that the idea of the condom is not yet integrated. The answer for us is obvious but it’s not easy to talk about these subjects when you’re 16-18 years old..”