Syphilis was practically non-existent as recently as 15 years ago. It reached its peak in the 1920s but cases declined with the rise of anti-biotics. It is thought of as a rare, antiquated disease but it is suddenly on the rise among men, affecting mostly gay and bisexual men who have sex with other men.
Reportedly, there were more than 1,760 cases of syphilis documented since 2013 -- a 39 percent increase since 2009. This is the highest rate of documented cases of syphilis in history, according to David Wilson, associate professor at the Kirby Institute.
The rise of the STI may be linked to decreased condom use and anonymous sex with multiple partners. But the exact cause behind the aggressive resurgence is still unknown.
Syphilis is a serious disease that can cause damage to the nervous system if not treated. Symptoms include paralysis, blindness, numbness, and dementia. Individuals become more at risk at contracting HIV when they have syphilis, and those who are already HIV positive will have a higher number of HIV cells in their bodies.
Men should begin testing themselves for syphilis as often as every three months or at the very least, annually, especially if they have multiple partners. They should also be on the lookout for lesions in the genital area, which indicate the infectious form of the virus, and inform their healthcare providers right away.
Proper use of condoms will help prevent further transmission of syphilis, but it can still be passed to a partner if the lesions are located outside the protective barrier of the condom.
The entire gay community, healthcare providers and the public health sector have to keep a coordinated effort to spread awareness about the sudden spike in infections and work together to bring the number of transmissions down.
When addressing the increase of syphilis among gay men in Australia, Dr. Gail Bolan of the U.S. Center for Disease Control, division of sexually transmitted disease prevention, said that raising awareness is the first step to addressing the disease.
"We've got the tools and I'm very confident that we can solve this problem. But obviously we've got to be innovative. We've got to be focused. And we've got to try new strategies. We've got to understand what the needs are today among gay, bisexual, and men having sex with other men, and making sure that we're addressing those needs," Bolan said in an interview with Mail Online.
Even though its infection rate is increasing, syphilis is still not as prevalent in Australia as other STIs. Gonorrhoea cases are on the rise, but chlamydia cases are slowly going down for the first time in recent years even though the disease is still the most common STI. Although hepatitis C numbers have also stabilized, more people are dying from it.
