"BINGE drinking" is to blame for the outbreak of chlamydia in our area which has seen thousands of young people contract the sexual infection in the past year.

That is the view of one local health professional, who also pointed to the fact that many youngsters are too embarrassed to visit their "friendly family GP" over concerns with sexual disease.

Dr Paul Charlson, medical director at the Quayside Open Access Medical Centre, is calling on doctors to adopt more "trendy" strategies of dealing with the spread of STIs in the region, following a report which revealed that more than 2,200 15 to 24 year-olds were diagnosed with chlamydia last year.

The number of cases, which are thought to be more prevalent among young women, have seen a marginal decline of two per cent on the 2008 statistics.

However, Dr Charlson is adamant that a more modern way of thinking is needed before the problem escalates out of control.

He said: "Issues with sexual health and teenage pregnancy have existed in the area for a long time and that is because these young people are hard to reach which leads to a severe lack of knowledge.

"The problem is that a lot of doctors are seen as being middle-class fogies who are seen as being out of touch with the younger generation. The internet has helped to educate some but in my opinion more trendy and novel practices are needed."

The experienced practitioner, who is also chair of the Conservative Medical Society, also argued that many young people are engaging in unprotected sex after a night of heavy drinking, before later regretting their actions.

He added: "Around one in six youngsters admit to having sex when they didn't really want to. That, combined with the fact that many of them are embarrassed to be checked by their friendly family GP – who they have known since childhood – means that there are a lot of young people going unchecked.

"I would encourage those young people to visit specialist clinics where they can avoid the likelihood of running into neighbours in the waiting room."

Despite long-term concerns over the state of sexual health in the region, a slight drop in recorded cases of chlamydia in the county is cause for optimism according to medical experts who have highlighted a rise in the number of those willing to be tested.

Paul Watson, clinical co-ordinator for the Sexual Health Outreach Team, said: "STI testing rates are relatively high in North East Lincolnshire – 26.4 per cent of young people aged 15-24 accessed chlamydia testing in 2009/10, which equates to 5,774 people undertaking the very simple urine test."

In 2009, figures for acute sexually transmitted infections in North Lincolnshire were running at a rate of just over 691 per 100,000 of population.

Rates per 100,000 for chlamydia were also worrying, with more than 2,440 15 to 24 year-olds being diagnosed with the condition.