THE World Health Organisation's (WHO) European office has decried a decline in condom use by adolescents, warning of infection and unplanned pregnancy risks in countries from Canada to central Asia.

Released today, the findings were part of WHO Europe’s latest report  on health behaviour in school-age children and were drawn from surveys of nearly 250,000 15-year-olds across 42 countries between 2014 and 2022.

“While results varied widely across the countries and regions, the most important observed trend since the [survey] in 2014 is of declines in some countries and regions in condom use among sexually active 15-year-olds," said WHO Europe regional director Dr Hans Kluge in a preface to the report.