by Jessica Carreras
As of the end of May, 53 cases of syphilis have been reported in Genesee County in 2008, according to the Genesee County Health Department. The surge in infections constitutes a large health concern in the area – and one of the trends among new infections is that they are occuring among men who have sex with men.
The department is urging sexually active individuals to use extreme care during sexual activity, watch for signs of syphilis and take immediate action when a symptom is identified.
This issue is especially relevant to at-risk populations, including drug users, people who have sex for money or drugs and those who have unprotected sex or sex with multiple partners. Though being a gay or bisexual man is not a risk factor in itself, it is a trend the health department has noticed in these recent cases. "It's one of the risk factors that we can identify in these outbreaks," said Community Health Director Mark Valacak.
"A number of (syphilis) outbreaks around the country have been in the MSM population," Valacak explained. "We're concerned that once you see it in a population, there's danger that it will spread."
One of the major problems causing this epidemic, Valacak said, is that syphilis is often misunderstood as a sexually transmitted disease that doesn't regularly occur anymore. "One of the issues is that a lot of people aren't aware that syphilis is still out there," he said.
However, the Center for Disease Control reported over 36,000 cases in the U.S. in 2006. The highest incidences were in women ages 20 to 24 and men ages 35 to 39. Sixty-four-percent of the cases in 2006 were among men who have sex with men.
In addition, genital sores caused by syphilis increase possibility of HIV transmission.
Syphilis is often misdiagnosed. "There have been a couple cases where we needed to have physician education," Valacak said. "The signs and symptoms can be similar to other diseases, so it can be mistaken for something else."
Several cases were originally diagnosed as herpes, and later found to be syphilis.
A third, related factor causing this jump in infections is a lack of knowledge about what the symptoms are and how syphilis can be spread. The first visible symptom is the appearance of a sore, which is seen at the site of infection. The sore can appear on the genitals, mouth or even hands of an infected individual. The STD can be spread through contact with an open sore during anal, vaginal or oral sex.
Valacak urges anyone who is at risk or who has noticed a sore to go to their doctor immediately for a blood test. If infected, the person should notify all sexual partners to prevent further spreading of the disease.
Syphilis can be treated and cured with antibiotics.
As for the Genesee County Health Department, measures are being taken to educate the population and quell the outbreak as quickly as possible. This includes outreach, testing and information posting.
"We've been workig closely with restaurants and bars. We've had good cooperation about them posting signs," Valacak shared. "We did a special testing one night at a gay bar in down and we're doing an information night at another one."
Valacak and his team have also been doing outreach work at jails and housing projects, targeting sex workers and drug addicts who are at extremely high risk for infection. "We're trying to do a good job in identifying partners, but we're haveing challenges in trying to track people down," Valacak said, citing the multiple, often anonymous partners of sex workers in the area.
As for the general population, Valacak recommends that individuals who are sexually active get tested when they go in for a routine physical. It is recommended that gay men be tested every three to six months.
