Canada almost wiped out syphilis. Now rates are skyrocketing — as more women, infants getting infectedhttps://www.cbc.ca/news/health/syphilis-canada-skyrocketing-1.7123968The crisis is Canada-wide. In Ontario, rates hit their highest level in 2022 at nearly 24 cases per 100,000 people, with a year-end tally of more than 3,500 infections. (That's close to the same number of cases reported across the entire country in 2016.)
The proportion of infections among men who only have sex with women, and women who only have sex with men, has risen dramatically during the same five-year span — with those two groups now making up the vast majority of all syphilis infections in B.C., jumping from 14 per cent of the grand total in 2018 to 65 per cent last year.
He called that a "devastating, preventable" outcome. (Syphilis caught during someone's pregnancy through a prenatal screening can be treated with a basic regimen of penicillin.)
Shifts in sexual practices may be fuelling STI riseWhile vulnerable communities may be more at risk, several experts suspect shifts in overall sex practices are partially fuelling syphilis's comeback.
The rise of online dating apps, resulting in more people having multiple sexual partners, is one leading theory. A trend toward more oral sex could also be playing a role, said O'Byrne from Ottawa Public Health, who stressed that people think it's safer because it's not a likely transmission route for HIV, even though it's a common transmission route for syphilis.
"People now use condoms less frequently," he added. "Or not at all."
The STI is caused by the spiral-shaped bacterium Treponema pallidum, and transmits via direct contact with someone who's infected through vaginal, anal, or oral sex. Without treatment, syphilis can damage the heart, brain or other organs — and if someone is pregnant, it can spread to their fetus, leading to a high rate of stillbirths and a host of health impacts if the baby survives.
"They can be deaf, they can be blind, they can have learning disabilities," said Rourke.
Most infections are asymptomatic or unrecognized.https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/syphilisSyphilis in pregnancy, when not treated, treated late or treated with the incorrect antibiotic, results in 50−80% of cases with adverse birth outcomes. Many people with syphilis do not notice any symptoms. They can also go unnoticed by heathcare providers. Untreated, syphilis lasts many years. Syphilis has several stages. Rapid tests can provide results in a few minutes, which allows treatment initiation, usually in the form of penicillin.
