US syphilis infection rate at highest level since 1950, CDC says.

The New York Times (1/30, Mandavilli) reports, “Syphilis, once nearly eliminated in the United States, continues to resurge, reaching the highest rate of new infections recorded since 1950, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday.” In 2022, there were more than 207,000 cases diagnosed, “the last year for which data are available. That represents an 80% increase since 2018, and 17% over the previous year’s tally, according to a new CDC report.”

The AP (1/30, Stobbe) reports that although syphilis “continues to have a disproportionate impact on gay and bisexual men, it is expanding in heterosexual men and women, and increasingly affecting newborns, too, CDC officials said.” CNN (1/30, McPhillips) reports, “There were 3,755 babies born with congenital syphilis in 2022, a 10-fold increase over the past decade and a 31% spike year-over-year; these cases caused 282 stillbirths and infant deaths in 2022.” Additionally, the infection rate “was highest among American Indian and Alaska Native people in 2022, with about 67 cases for every 100,000 people.”