Doctors are warning that cases of the sexually transmitted disease (STD) syphilis have risen 128%.
In 2022 there were 674 reported cases of the disease.
In 2019, there were 295 cases.
According to the Houston Health Department, the spike in cases may be attributed to pregnant women, as the disease can be passed to unborn babies.
For example, there were 151 cases of congenital syphilis in 2021, compared to 16 cases in 2016.
“It is crucial for pregnant women to seek prenatal care and syphilis testing to protect themselves from an infection that could result in the deaths of their babies,” said an assistant director with the Houston Health Department, Marlene McNeese Ward.
She recommended that pregnant women be tested for syphilis three times.
“In most cases, syphilis goes undetected because the signs and symptoms are misinterpreted or simply unnoticed,” the Houston agency said in a news release.
Reporting from The Epoch Times:
One of the most significant “consequences is when the infection itself affects the central nervous system or the brain of the newborn,” Ms. Stafford told PBS earlier this year. ” That can lead to neurosyphilis, which is quite detrimental and hard on a newborn baby and the family, of course.” ... Earlier this year, the CDC released new data showing that across the United States, syphilis, congenital syphilis, and other STDs are on the rise. In 2021, there were 2.5 million cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis, the data show, with the most significant rises occurring in individuals with syphilis and congenital syphilis.
