This is the dashboard report on STI and HIV trends in BC for the fourth quarter of 2016 (October – December 2016). These reports are posted quarterly to provide a snapshot of HIV and sexually transmitted infections in British Columbia.
The dashboard below describes the number of HIV and STI cases reported to public health in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2016. The risk factor categories for HIV — MSM, PWID, and HET — are from the second quarter (Q2) of 2016 due to expected reporting delays.
HIV
There were 258 new HIV diagnoses in BC in 2016, slightly higher than in 2015 (n=239). However, it is in keeping with the number of new HIV diagnoses in the last 5 years.
The number of new HIV diagnoses among men who have sex with men, heterosexual individuals, and people who use injection drugs decreased in 2016Q1-2 compared to 2015Q1-2. Note, only 2016Q1-2 data is presented due to reporting delays.
Chlamydia
There were 15,092 cases of chlamydia reported in 2016, which is a 5% increase compared to 2015. Overall, this is consistent with the average year-to-year increase in chlamydia cases over the past decade.
Gonorrhea
The number of gonorrhea cases in BC remained relatively unchanged in 2016 Q4 (n=942), compared with 2016 Q3 (n=989). Overall, there has been a 5% increase in gonorrhea from 2015 (n=3495) to 2016 (n=3653).
Infectious Syphilis
There were 760 cases of infectious syphilis reported in BC for 2016, which is the same as the number of cases reported in 2015. There was an 18% increase in cases among females in 2016 compared to 2015, but the number of infectious syphilis cases among females is small overall.
Over 95% of all infectious syphilis cases are among males. More specifically, men who have sex with men continue to be the group disproportionately affected by infectious syphilis.