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Did syphilis in the US increase 80% in four years and cause 231 stillbirths in 2022?

By Tom Kertscher
YES

Syphilis cases in the U.S. increased 80% from 2018 to 2022 and caused 231 stillbirths in 2022, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Jan. 30, 2024.

The cases are the highest since the 1950s, the CDC said.

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection that is spread through vaginal, anal or oral sex. Untreated, it can seriously damage the heart and brain, and can cause blindness, deafness and paralysis. 

Cases increased from 115,000 in 2018 to more than 207,000 in 2022.  

The highest rate was 84.3 per 100,000 people in South Dakota; the lowest was 0.5 in Vermont; Wisconsin ranked 29th at 12.6. 

The 231 stillbirths was in addition to 51 infant deaths.

The syphilis increase may be related to diverting funds from public health clinics to COVID-19 treatment, according to a study published in July 2022 in the Annals of Medicine and Surgery journal.

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