(Washington) American health authorities called on Tuesday for general mobilization in the face of the increase in cases of syphilis among newborns, which have more than doubled in ten years, reflecting more broadly a worrying situation concerning the resurgence of sexually transmitted infections. transmissible in the country.
Syphilis is developed by infants when the mother herself is infected and left untreated. In a pregnant woman, syphilis can lead to miscarriages, death of the newborn, or long-term complications for the baby, such as loss of vision or hearing, or even bone malformations.
More than 3,700 babies will be born with syphilis in the United States in 2022, more than ten times more than in 2012, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the main federal health agency in the United States. UNITED STATES.
However, 9 out of 10 cases could have been avoided thanks to screening and treatment taken in time during pregnancy, underlines the agency.
The congenital syphilis crisis in the United States has ballooned to a heartbreaking level.
Debra Houry, senior official at the CDC
“The epidemic of sexually transmitted infections continues to intensify in our country,” she added during a press conference. Syphilis cases are increasing “in all age groups, including women of childbearing age and their sexual partners.” »
Black, Native American or Hispanic babies were also up to eight times more likely to be born with syphilis than babies with white mothers in 2021, the CDC points out. A finding that the agency attributes to “decades of deeply rooted social determinants,” creating more barriers to access to care.
According to health authorities, the lack of testing and treatment is linked to a combination of individual and systemic factors.
“Barriers may include a lack of health coverage, living in a medical or gynecological care desert, difficulty accessing transportation, difficulties with drug use, unstable housing, poverty and racism », Listed Laura Bachmann, responsible within the CDC branch dedicated to the prevention of sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
The agency therefore calls on health professionals to use every opportunity to screen pregnant women, including when they are seen by emergency services, or even programs related to drug consumption.
The CDC also recommends initiating treatment upon obtaining a positive rapid test in a pregnant woman, even if it then requires confirmation.