TEXAS: Syphilis Infections Rising in San Antonio, Across Nation

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2004. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

TEXAS: Syphilis Infections Rising in San Antonio, Across Nation

San Antonio Express-News (12.18.04) - Wednesday, December 22, 2004
Lisa Marie Gomez

Primary and secondary syphilis cases in Bexar County leapt from 51 cases in 2003 to 95 cases as of Dec. 1 this year, and at least half of reported cases are among men who have sex with men (MSM), a county health official said Friday. "We are very concerned," said Dr. Sandra Guerra-Cantu, communicable- disease division medical director at the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District. Guerra-Cantu worries that the increase in cases is a precursor of growth in HIV cases.

An aggressive STD campaign in the late 1980s and early 1990s to combat rising STD rates helped lower syphilis numbers through the decade, with more people using condoms or abstaining from sex. In 1991, Texas reported 5,012 primary and secondary syphilis cases; 459 cases in 1999; 398 cases in 2000; 650 cases in 2003; and 743 cases as of Dec. 1, 2004.

Syphilis cases have increased nationally by 18 percent in the past three years, CDC recently reported. But for gays, cases have jumped 12-fold. Young gay men - especially Latino and African-American gay youths - are at a higher risk for the disease. Atlanta, Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York and San Francisco reported the most cases of syphilis among MSM in 2002.

"In San Antonio, we are having a lot of gay males who are claiming that they are hooking up with someone over the Internet," said Guerra-Cantu. "And all they know about the other person is their e-mail address."
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