Seen our tattoo-themed campaign in the gay press, on your favourite online dating site or on a condom pack picked up on the scene?
Its attention-grabbing ink work gets the message across: the more men you have sex with, the more often you need a check up (one at least once every six months is recommended).
STI rates are skyrocketing among gay and bisexual men. Last year gonorrhoea infections went up over 60 per cent, with big rises in chlamydia, herpes, genital warts and syphilis. We make up 75 per cent of the country’s syphilis cases and half of all the gonorrhoea. The year before saw similar rises.
Using condoms means less risk of infections but STIs often spread despite condom use (eg, through oral sex). So routine check ups give you the peace of mind that you don’t have anything – or haven’t unknowingly passed an infection on. Worryingly a third of gay and bisexual men have never had a sexual health check up. And did you know that having an STI puts you at more risk of HIV or, if you’re HIV positive already, of passing HIV on?
The Man Up game on Facebook is part of the campaign. It’s a fun way of getting the message across about partner numbers and STI risk. Choose a character, jump the beds, dodge the ‘bugs’ and bank points at the clinic. Nearly 20,000 have played already – get jumping!
The Man Up game and the STI screening campaign have been produced by Terrence Higgins Trust as part of CHAPS, the Department of Health-funded partnership of community organisations delivering HIV prevention to gay and bisexual men in England.