A record number of sexually transmitted infections were notified to the National Disease Surveillance Centre (NDSC) in 2001, according to figures published yesterday.
They indicate more than 9,700 infections were notified in 2001, half of them in the eastern region.
The most dramatic increase was in the number of detected cases of syphilis, which increased by 506.5 per cent in 2001 over 2000. There had been 46 cases of syphilis notified in 2000 compared to 279 in 2001.
Most of these infections were among gay men, the majority aged between 30 and 39.
Dr Mary Cronin, a specialist in public health medicine with the NDSC, said the outbreak of syphilis here followed outbreaks in other European cities such as Paris, Antwerp, London and Manchester and it was likely the disease was brought here by men travelling from these other cities to Dublin where, she said, there was "quite an active gay scene".
An outbreak control team was established by the Eastern Regional Health Authority to deal with the situation, she confirmed.
She added that although unpublished figures showed the incidence of syphilis was high again in 2002, the outbreak appeared to have peaked in 2001.
The message for gay men was the same as for the rest of the population if they wanted to avoid sexually transmitted infections (STIs), she said. They had to practice safe sex.
Meanwhile there were huge increases also in a number of other STIs notified to the NDSC in 2001. These included a 160 per cent increase in cases of infectious hepatitis B, a 23 per cent increase in cases of genital herpes simplex, a 22 per cent rise in chlamydia and a 20 per cent increase in cases of gonorrhoea.
The total number of sexually transmitted infections reported in 2001 increased by 9.4 per cent on the previous year.