Update on syphilis: resurgence of an old problem
IN 1937 US SURGEON GENERAL Thomas Parran estimated that 10% of Americans would
be infected with syphilis during their lives. 1 Rates of primary and secondary syphilis
plummeted with the institution of public health control measures and the advent of penicillin,
reaching a nadir in 2000. Since then, rates have continued to decline among women and
infants, although overall rates again have begun to climb. 2 The dominant epidemiological
features of syphilis in the United States today include varying incidence rates by geography …
be infected with syphilis during their lives. 1 Rates of primary and secondary syphilis
plummeted with the institution of public health control measures and the advent of penicillin,
reaching a nadir in 2000. Since then, rates have continued to decline among women and
infants, although overall rates again have begun to climb. 2 The dominant epidemiological
features of syphilis in the United States today include varying incidence rates by geography …