A woman in the UK has contracted a rare sexually transmitted infection (STI) that causes the genitals to erupt and rot. The unnamed woman, from Southport, Merseyside, was diagnosed in the woman within the last year. All it takes to contract the bug – known as donovanosis – is skin-to-skin contact with someone with a bleeding, foul-smelling ulcer.
The ulcers then destroy tissue in the genitals, but the bug is extremely rare in the UK with only a handful of cases every year. It is more commonly found in tropical locations in the Americas, Southern Africa and Oceania regions.
‘Bacteria that cause the disease, known as klebsiella granulomatis, infect the skin around the genitals, groin or anal area and causes lesions and skin disintegration as the flesh effectively consumes itself.’
‘This bacteria is also a risk factor in the transmission of HIV.’ Public Health England said: ‘Donovanosis primarily occurs in tropical countries or regions of the Americas, Southern Africa and Oceania. ‘It is very rarely diagnosed and reported in the UK.’