Tourists bring sex diseases back with souvenirs

July 23, 2004

London - Young travellers and sex tourists are returning from exotic locations with more than just tans and souvenirs -- for some, infections such as syphilis and HIV are lingering reminders of a holiday romance.

"A large proportion of people are having sexual intercourse with new partners when they go abroad...and are putting themselves at risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs)," said Dr Karen Rogstad of the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield.

In a report published in the British Medical Journal on Friday, Rogstad reviewed research studies on STIs and searched global health websites and others that could be expected to provide information about travelling to other countries.

"Travel abroad seems to be responsible for a small but increasingly important proportion of acute STIs in the United Kingdom," she said.

In one study of heterosexual men in Britain, 21 percent of syphilis infections were from sexual contacts abroad and 9 percent of gonorrhoea sufferers had had sex in a foreign country in the previous three months.

"Between 2000 and 2002, 69 percent of United Kingdom born men with heterosexually acquired HIV were infected through sex while abroad, as were a quarter of women. Of these men, 22 percent were probably infected in Thailand," Rogstad said.

Young people under 25 years old face a high risk of bringing home more than they had expected from a holiday abroad because foreign tourists are often perceived as easy prey, alcohol may cloud their judgement and there is an increasing use of the date rape drug Rohypnol.

But Rogstad said sex tourists who travelled abroad with the intention of having sex faced the ultimate holiday gamble.

"A study of male German sex tourists in Thailand showed that most were aged 30-40 and single, with a well-paid job. Of these, 30-40 percent used condoms," she added.

Only about three percent of travel brochures contain advice on safe sex and few companies supply information about the risk tourists face, according to the research.

"More worrying is tour operators' encouragement of sex with new partners by presenting prizes," she added.

Rogstad believes educating travellers about the risks they may face abroad and supplying information when tourists book their holidays or receive medical treatment before leaving could help to reduce the problem.

"Prevention advice should be offered to all people going on holiday but particularly those going to the developing world," she added.

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