Syphilis Cases Climbing Among Gay Men: CDC
Syphilis Cases Climbing Among Gay Men: CDC
By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
FRIDAY, May 9, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- Syphilis has returned with a vengeance to the gay community, U.S. health officials reported Friday.
Cases of the sexually transmitted disease, once almost eliminated in the United States, have more than doubled among gay and bisexual men since the year 2000, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Based on data from the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System reported as of April 28, 2014, U.S. health officials found there were 5.3 cases of primary and secondary syphilis per 100,000 people in 2013 compared to 2.1 cases per 100,000 in 2000.
From 2005 to 2013, the rates increased the most among men of all ages and races/ethnicities across all regions of the United States. And in recent years, the largest increases have occurred among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men, according to the report published May 9 in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
"We are very concerned about what we consider this rising epidemic of syphilis among gay and bisexual men," said Dr. Gail Bolan, director of the CDC's division of STD prevention. "This is a consistent, disturbing trend."
In 2000, the year with the fewest cases of syphilis, there were 6,000 cases nationwide. "This was an all-time low, and the vast majority of cases were among heterosexuals," Bolan said.
In 2012, there were almost 9,000 cases of syphilis, and 84 percent of them were among gay and bisexual men, Bolan noted. "We are talking about cases more than doubling," she added.
In 2013, there were more than 16,000 cases of syphilis, 91 percent of these in men. "We haven't seen case numbers like that since back in the '90s," Bolan said.
Bolan isn't sure why syphilis is making a resurgence. "We think it's a mix of social and individual factors, but we need more information to know why," she said.
Fighting syphilis is particularly difficult because it is only contagious during the brief time symptoms appear. To stem the tide of most sexually transmitted diseases, patients are asked about their partners so they can be identified and tested.
HealthDay Reporter
FRIDAY, May 9, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- Syphilis has returned with a vengeance to the gay community, U.S. health officials reported Friday.
Cases of the sexually transmitted disease, once almost eliminated in the United States, have more than doubled among gay and bisexual men since the year 2000, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Based on data from the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System reported as of April 28, 2014, U.S. health officials found there were 5.3 cases of primary and secondary syphilis per 100,000 people in 2013 compared to 2.1 cases per 100,000 in 2000.
From 2005 to 2013, the rates increased the most among men of all ages and races/ethnicities across all regions of the United States. And in recent years, the largest increases have occurred among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men, according to the report published May 9 in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
"We are very concerned about what we consider this rising epidemic of syphilis among gay and bisexual men," said Dr. Gail Bolan, director of the CDC's division of STD prevention. "This is a consistent, disturbing trend."
In 2000, the year with the fewest cases of syphilis, there were 6,000 cases nationwide. "This was an all-time low, and the vast majority of cases were among heterosexuals," Bolan said.
In 2012, there were almost 9,000 cases of syphilis, and 84 percent of them were among gay and bisexual men, Bolan noted. "We are talking about cases more than doubling," she added.
In 2013, there were more than 16,000 cases of syphilis, 91 percent of these in men. "We haven't seen case numbers like that since back in the '90s," Bolan said.
Bolan isn't sure why syphilis is making a resurgence. "We think it's a mix of social and individual factors, but we need more information to know why," she said.
Fighting syphilis is particularly difficult because it is only contagious during the brief time symptoms appear. To stem the tide of most sexually transmitted diseases, patients are asked about their partners so they can be identified and tested.
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