Heart disease

There have been tens of thousands of cases but infection is preventable

Health experts have warned of two diseases spreading in Spain and other parts of Europe and urged UK holidaymakers to take precautions this summer. According to new data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), gonorrhoea cases across Europe reached 106,331 in 2024 – a 303% increase since 2015.

At the same time, syphilis cases more than doubled to 45,577. Spain recorded some of the highest numbers of infections reported in Europe, with 37,169 gonorrhoea cases and 11,556 syphilis cases in 2024.

Gemma Nice, sex and relationships coach at condoms.uk, said: “People often behave differently on holiday because routines disappear and inhibitions lower. Alcohol, spontaneity, and the ‘holiday mindset’ can all lead to riskier sexual behaviour than people might normally engage in at home.

“We’re not saying people shouldn’t enjoy holiday romances, but many people wrongly assume that pregnancy prevention and STI protection are the same thing. Condoms remain the only form of contraception that helps protect against both pregnancy and STIs.”

Experts also warn that many travellers underestimate how common symptomless STIs can be, meaning infections can unknowingly spread between partners. Gemma said: “One of the biggest misconceptions is that you would immediately know if someone had an STI – or if you had one yourself. In reality, many infections can remain symptomless for weeks or even months while still being transmissible.

“We’re also seeing growing complacency around condoms, particularly where people rely on other forms of contraception or assume someone is ‘low risk’ without having open conversations around testing.”

The ECDC has warned that widening gaps in testing and prevention are contributing to rising infection rates across Europe, with officials urging people to use condoms with new or multiple partners and seek testing if symptoms appear.

According to experts at condoms.uk, several common holiday behaviours can increase STI risk while travelling – particularly when combined with alcohol, spontaneity, heat, and lower inhibitions.

Common mistakes include:

• Storing condoms in hot beach bags or cars Excess heat can damage latex and increase the risk of breakage without people realising.
• Using suncream before handling condoms Oil-based products can weaken latex and increase the likelihood of condom failure.
• Having sex in pools, hot tubs or the sea Water reduces natural lubrication, increasing friction and the chance of irritation or condom breakage.
• Relying on local shops or vending machines for protection Travellers may struggle to find familiar brands, sizing, or products that meet UK standards.
• Assuming oral sex carries little STI risk Infections including gonorrhoea and syphilis can still be passed on through oral sex.
• Skipping sexual health checks before or after travelling Many STIs can remain symptomless, making regular testing important after new sexual encounters.

Gemma added: “Many holiday-related STI risks come down to small, avoidable mistakes. Packing protection, checking condoms are stored properly, and having open conversations around sexual health can make a huge difference. It’s also important to always check the expiry dates on all condoms and lubricant products.

“Holiday sex should still be safe sex. Planning ahead and carrying protection is one of the easiest ways to protect both yourself and your partner.”

Closed since 2014, the airport was briefly brought back into use as a lorry park during the pandemic, but the reopening plans have hit a snag after the local council raised concerns

An abandoned airport boasting the UK’s 11th-longest civilian runway has hit a significant obstacle ahead of its long-anticipated reopening. Plans to restore Manston Airport, near Ramsgate in Kent, back to full operation have been in motion since 2019, with the project anticipated to cost somewhere between £500m and £750m.

The site has stood idle since 2014 but was given a new lease of life during the Covid-19 pandemic as a lorry park. Current owner RiverOak Strategic Partners Ltd (RSP) is aiming to relaunch the airport as a global air freight hub, alongside offering commercial flights by 2029.

In March, RSP launched a public consultation on the proposals. Its director, Tony Freudmann, invited people to “provide any feedback they might have to help shape our plans”.

At that point, the firm anticipated construction work beginning early next year. However, in May, Ramsgate Town Council announced it would raise concerns over proposed changes to flight paths and airspace as part of the Stage 3 consultation.

Shuttered since 2014, the site was temporarily repurposed as a lorry park during the Covid-19 pandemic. RSP acquired Manston in 2019, with the Development Consent Order (DCO) granting approval for the reopening signed off in 2020.

This faced legal challenges, though an updated DCO was approved in 2022. Ramsgate Town Council contended that the proposed flight paths would result in aircraft passing over heavily populated areas of Ramsgate at low altitudes.

It was noted in the proposals that the airport could see up to 14,000 air traffic movements a year by 2038—about 38 flights a day. The council highlighted the potential impact this could have on residents.

RTC highlighted potential adverse health consequences stemming from noise exposure, as outlined in the proposal. These include disrupted sleep, a heightened risk of strokes and heart attacks, loss of amenity and possible links to dementia.

In fact, the applicant’s own plans put the potential cost of noise-related health conditions at more than £20.8 million over 10 years. RTC said it had further concerns, too.

It argued that the size of the intended operations is much larger in scale compared to past levels. RTC also suggested that there was a lack of evidence regarding secured funds or operators.

Also, it claimed demand had not been independently verified. In addition, the council didn’t believe that the consultation was enough for the size of the proposal, citing a limited number of engagement events.

RTC chairperson Cllr Steve Albon told The Isle of Thanet News: “Ramsgate Town Council recognises the importance of this issue to residents and is committed to ensuring that local concerns are clearly and professionally represented.

“The council will continue to engage with relevant authorities and stakeholders to try to ensure that any decisions relating to Manston Airport fully consider the impact on Ramsgate’s community.”

BBC Morning Live’s legal expert, Gary Rycroft said he thought he was suffering from asthma

A BBC star has explained how he was horrified to be ‘hours’ from a potentially lethal heart attack after undergoing a surgical procedure. BBC Morning Live’s legal expert, Gary Rycroft, told hosts Rick Edwards and Helen Skelton that he had been suffering from a few chest pains, but put it down to just getting older.

He decided to do the Couch to 5k challenge – and said he had never felt better in many ways. He said: “I think it’s typical of dare I say men of my age, where we ignore things. We think we’re getting old. I didn’t wear glasses till I was 50. My hearing really is not as good as it used to be.

“So when I started to get chest pains walking my dog, I live on top of a hill, so I’m up and down the hill two or three times a day walking to work, walking my dog, and I’d say every fortnight or so I’d get a chest pain and it would it would pass really quickly. So I didn’t really think anything of it. I put it to the back of my mind as people tend to do.”

Mr Rycroft said whatever people do they should get any symptoms checked out. He only got it checked out because he was doing the Couch to 5k and thought he’d like to hear from a doctor.

He said: “I actually did feel a lot better and I lost quite a bit of weight. So, I was feeling really good, but I’d started this diagnostic journey with my GP. So, I’d had an ECG. They checked out the electrics of the heart. That was fine. And then in January, I went to have a cardiac CT scan, which is kind of an X-ray of the heart to check out the structure and check out the plumbing.

“And when I got the result of that a couple of weeks later, it was really quite bad news which floored me, which was actually the main artery to your heart is pretty much blocked. And of course, you start googling and it was called the left anterior descending artery. Not very helpfully on the internet, it’s often referred to as the widow maker. So, suddenly I was in quite a dark place to be honest, and it was quite stressful for my partner Jenny and the kids.”

It was when he had the straightforward operation to put in a stent that the full extent became clear. Gary said: “The next thing to do is called an invasive angiogram, where they put a little tube up your wrist, and they fit what’s called a stent.

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“So, I had that procedure. It was all done in about 40 minutes. It was pretty remarkable. And you know, thank goodness for medical science. When I came round from that, the cardiologist was kind of, you know, you’re a very lucky person, because you were probably hours or days from having a massive potentially fatal heart attack. So, that was that was quite a lot to take in.“

Doctor Xand van Tulleken said: “If you’ve had this procedure I mean they are safe. They are very common and Gary’s risk you know it is traumatic having these things. You get much closer to death than you would want to. But if you can manage your blood pressure, your cholesterol, quit smoking, manage your risk factors, your GP will help you with all of that afterwards, you you you know Gary’s life expectancy is pretty much the same as it was before the procedure, which is fantastic. That’s the reason to go and have it done.

Gary added: “This is a silent killer for people in their 50s and 60s and people will have lost people. And I wanted to talk about this because I wanted to say to people, don’t wait as long as I did. I had a very close shave. Don’t wait as long as I did. And if you’re living with someone who’s concerned, encourage them to have that conversation. If something’s not quite right, it’s well worth checking it out.”

A high number of cases were reported in the last 12 months – with a 5-fold increase in some areas – and 143 deaths

Travellers have been warned about the resurgence of a disease spread by mosquitos with ‘high risk’ in 42 countries. The Foreign Office-backed Travel Health Pro website this week issued an alert over the virus spreading in parts of Africa, Central and South America, and in Trinidad in the Caribbean.

Yellow Fever can cause a serious haemorrhagic illness that can be fatal for humans. Yellow fever vaccination and mosquito bite avoidance are important preventive measures against the disease, officials said. Yellow fevefr virus can cause an illness that results in jaundice , yellowing of the skin and eyes, and bleeding with severe damage to the major organs such as liver, kidneys and heart. The mortality rate is high in those who develop severe disease.

Travel Health Pro said yellow fever is a risk in areas of 13 countries and territories in South and Central America. A high number of cases were reported from this region in 2025, with 346 confirmed human cases (including 143 deaths) from seven countries.

This represents a 5.6-fold increase in cases compared to 2024. Since the beginning of 2026, a total of 41 confirmed cases (including 18 deaths) have been reported from four countries: Bolivia, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela.

In 2024, most yellow fever cases were reported from the Amazon region. Officials said: “While YF cases continue to be reported in this area, cases have since been reported in a wider geographic area, outside the Amazon region. This includes in Sao Paulo State in Brazil and Tolima Department in Colombia. In addition, reports suggest recent human YF cases in Venezuela have occurred in an area that had not previously been considered a risk for YF disease.

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“Risk of YF outbreaks in South America remains high. An outbreak in Colombia has been ongoing since mid-2024, with 153 confirmed cases (including 62 deaths) reported. The confirmed reporting of YF cases in a wider geographic area, including cases related to jungle transmission near to urban centres, increases the risk of urban outbreaks [1]. While YF vaccination is one of the most successful public health interventions to prevent YF disease, the COVID-19 pandemic, among other factors, has led to a reduction of YF vaccine cover in the local population.”

It added that yell;ow fever risk countries in Africa continue to report probable and confirmed cases. During 2024, confirmed cases of YF were reported in countries with no recent history of transmission and suboptimal vaccination coverage.

WHO also advise that in some African countries, there may be under-reporting of YF due to surveillance and data collection issues. The risk of YF transmission remains high in endemic areas of Africa. The mosquitoes (Aedes spp.) that transmit YF are common in many urban areas in Africa. This significantly increases the risk of YF spreading, especially in heavily populated areas, which could lead to the rapid onset of YF outbreaks.

Countries with a risk of yellow fever transmission as defined by the World Health Organization

Africa

• Angola
• Benin
• Burkina Faso
• Burundi
• Cameroon
• Central African Republic
• Chad*
• Congo
• Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Equatorial Guinea
• Ethiopia*
• Gabon
• The Gambia
• Ghana
• Guinea
• Guinea-Bissau
• Kenya*
• Liberia
• Mali*
• Mauritania*
• Niger*
• Nigeria
• Senegal
• Sierra Leone
• South Sudan
• Sudan*
• Togo
• Uganda

Central and South America

• Argentina*
• Bolivia*
• Brazil*
• Colombia*
• Ecuador*
• French Guiana
• Guyana
• Panama*
• Paraguay*
• Peru*
• Suriname
• Trinidad and Tobago*
• Venezuela*

*Only some parts of this country have a risk of yellow fever disease. Remaining areas either have low potential for yellow fever transmission or no risk.

Signs and symptoms

YF varies in severity. The infection has an incubation period (time from infected mosquito feeding to symptoms developing) of three to six days. Initial symptoms include myalgia (muscle pain), pyrexia (high temperature), headache, anorexia (lack of appetite), nausea, and vomiting. In many patients there will be improvement in symptoms and gradual recovery three to four days after the onset of symptoms.

Within 24 hours of an apparent recovery, 15 to 25 percent of patients progress to a more serious illness. This takes the form of an acute haemorrhagic fever, in which there may be bleeding from the mouth, eyes, ears, and stomach, pronounced jaundice (yellowing of the skin, from which the disease gets its name), and renal (kidney) damage. The patient develops shock and there is deterioration of major organ function; 20 to 50 percent of patients who develop this form of the disease do not survive [22]. Infection results in lifelong immunity in those who recover.

Dr Xand van Tulleken told viewers ‘it can be like a heart attack for your legs’

A BBC doctor has given a worrying update for anyone who has woken up in the morning with a pain in the leg. Appearing on BBC Morning Live, Dr Xand van Tulleken told viewers they should ‘never’ just write symptoms off as what happens due to ageing.

Many people get aches and pains, but specific discomfort in the legs should be investigated, he said. Host Helen Skelton said: “We’re looking at protecting our health now, though. And if you started this morning with a pain in your leg, you’re not alone.

“It’s thought that one in five people over the age of 60 is living with a blood vessel disorder.“ Dr Xand said “It’s really important that no one should ever regard any symptoms they have as just part of getting older. If you have a symptom and you don’t know why you have it, you need to get an explanation.

“Whether it’s shortness of breath or pain in your legs. There are lots of different causes for pain in your legs, but this morning we’re talking about peripheral arterial disease, which is a sort of intimidating medical term, but really we mean just peripheral, meaning it’s at the outside of your body. It’s in your legs rather than being in your heart or your brain.”

Arterial disease might be the cause – and that’s a condition which can mean there are serious health issues at stake beyond just aching legs. Dr Xand said “Arterial disease is the same problems that gives us heart attacks and strokes. Your blood vessels narrow over time. They can calcify, they harden, they clog up with cholesterol, and you are left with a narrower space for blood to flow through and that means that you’re not getting a sufficient blood supply to your legs and that can give you leg pain.

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“And you can think of it a little bit like in the same way that some people get angina, they get heart pain when they exercise, when they move around. This is a bit like angina for your legs. And sometimes if those blood vessels completely clog off, it can be like a heart attack for your legs.”

The NHS says many people with PAD have no symptoms. However, some develop a painful ache in their legs when they walk, which usually disappears after a few minutes’ rest. The medical term for this is “intermittent claudication”.

The pain can affect 1 or both legs, range from mild to severe, and usually goes away after a few minutes when the person rests their legs.

Other symptoms of PAD can include:

• hair loss on your legs and feet
• numbness or weakness in the legs
• brittle, slow-growing toenails
• ulcers (open sores) on your feet and legs, which do not heal
• changing skin colour on your legs, such as turning paler than usual or blue – this may be harder to see on brown and black skin
• shiny skin
• in men, erectile dysfunction
• the muscles in your legs shrinking (wasting)

The NHS adds: “The symptoms of PAD often develop slowly, over time. If your symptoms develop quickly, or get suddenly worse, it could be a sign of a serious problem requiring immediate treatment.”

Dr Xand added: “The quality of the pain is quite specific. I mean, the way that people describe it and it typically wouldn’t be a pain that you’d get when you’re just sitting still, much like angina. It’s the pain that comes from not getting enough oxygen to your muscles. Those blood vessels aren’t working. And so, people tend to describe a kind of deep, heavy ache, like they’re just not, and you can almost feel that thing of just not getting enough.

“It’s a bit like if you’re lifting weights at the gym, if you go beyond your limits, you know, your muscles really start to hurt. It’s a similar thing. The pain is called claudication, but it’s that kind of pain. And typically, if you rest, it’ll go away again. So, that’s the that’s the kind of pain, but there are other changes that you can look for as well.”

He said people might see changes in their legs which could indicate the problem. Dr Xand said: “If you do look at your legs, you may see some changes if you don’t have a good enough blood supply. So, things like loss of hair on your legs would be an examples. The hair the hair can’t grow anymore because you’re not getting enough nutrients to your leg.

“Cold feet, the warm blood from the middle of your body is no longer reaching your feet. Ulcers or cuts are not healing because your immune system carried in your bloodstream is not reaching those and so you’re getting skin breakdown. You’re not getting antibodies and white blood cells and things like that. Changes in skin tone. So, your skin may look kind of mottled and gray as if it’s not getting enough blood. And then your toenails, you may think, I haven’t cut my toenails in a while. Well, are they just simply growing because they’re not getting the nutrients from the bloodstream that they need. So, those are things that might be a clue.”

Tackling the problem

A main cause is smoking, Dr Xand said, and also making sure people get cholesterol, blood pressure measured and check if you have diabetes. He said exercise is a good way of trying to improve the situation: “This may sound a bit a bit paradoxical, may sound like it’s hard to exercise, you’re getting pain when you exercise, but doing some exercise can stimulate the growth of new blood vessels. It can help those blood vessels open up.

“It will lower your cholesterol. It will lower your blood pressure. It will lower your stress. It will improve your blood sugar. You get so many wins from doing a bit of exercise.”

More information from the NHS here.