Canada experiencing ‘alarming increase’ in syphilis cases, top doctor says
Global News
Canada is witnessing a troubling surge in syphilis cases, with numbers doubling over the past few years, prompting health officials to sound the alarm.
Canada is witnessing a troubling surge in syphilis cases, with numbers doubling over the past few years, prompting health officials to sound the alarm on the escalating public health concern.
In a media release on Wednesday, Dr. Theresa Tam, chief public health officer at the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), warned that the country, like many others, is experiencing “an alarming increase in syphilis cases.”
In 2022, there were 13,953 cases of infectious syphilis and 117 cases of early congenital syphilis, which occurs when a pregnant person passes syphilis to their baby. This represents a doubling in infectious syphilis and a six-fold increase in congenital syphilis in Canada compared with 2018, PHAC said in the release.
A January report published by Public Health Ontario revealed a steady increase in syphilis cases in Ontario from 2013 to 2019. Following a slight decline in 2020, the incidence rate surged to its peak in 2022.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also recently warned about a rise in syphilis cases and other sexually transmitted diseases south of the border.
Syphilis, a sexually transmitted bacterial infection, can lead to severe complications if left untreated, affecting organs such as the heart, brain, blood vessels and nervous system.
PHAC cautioned that not everyone will exhibit noticeable symptoms of syphilis, particularly in the early stages of infection, increasing the likelihood of people being unknowingly infected.
“This makes it easier for the infection to spread undetected, which reinforces the critical importance of early testing, diagnosis and treatment,” Tam stated.
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