Significant Increase in Congenital Syphillis Cases

KDHE

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment’s (KDHE’s) Bureau of Disease Control and Prevention is alerting Kansas providers of the significant increase in congenital syphilis cases during the current calendar year. There have been six cases of congenital syphilis reported to KDHE so far in 2018, compared to only a single case in the previous five years. This reflects the alarming national trends observed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), who recently reported that rates of congenital syphilis have more than doubled over the past five years, with 2017 having the highest number of reported cases in 20 years. All pregnant women should be tested for syphilis at the first prenatal visit. For women who are at high risk for syphilis, live in areas of high syphilis morbidity, are previously untested, or had a positive screening test in the first trimester, the syphilis screening test should be repeated during the third trimester (28 to 32 weeks gestation) and again at delivery. Any woman who delivers a stillborn infant after 20 week’s gestation should also be tested for syphilis. Read KDHE notice.