17 Apr 2023 • Cases of the sexually transmitted disease syphilis soared in 2021 to the highest total in more than 70 years, a new report says. The CDC has finalized all of the 2021 data, and the increase is worse than what was announced back in March.

• In just a 1-year period, from 2020 to 2021, cases increased by 32%, to 176,713, according to newly finalized data from the CDC. That is the highest total number of syphilis cases the U.S. has seen since 1950.
• The CDC called a 32% increase from 2020 to 2021 of congenital syphilis cases "alarming," reporting that it resulted in 220 stillbirths and infant deaths in 2021.
• A CDC official labeled the situation an "epidemic"
• "The reasons for the ongoing increases are multifaceted – and so are the solutions," said Leandro Mena, director of the CDC's STD prevention division, in a statement. "It will take many of us working together to effectively use new and existing tools, to increase access to quality sexual healthcare services for more people, and to encourage ongoing innovation and prioritization of STI prevention and treatment in this country."

Source: Medscape | Read full story