China reports syphilis infections up 30 percent each year
China, Jun 18, 2010
On Saturday (June 12), Chinese state media reported that rampant prostitution in China, which has accompanied rapid economic growth, has fueled a 30 percent increase in syphilis infections each year, Agence France-Presse (AFP) and local media reported. The China Daily quoted the ministry of health as saying that syphilis was almost wiped out in China 50 years ago, but has increased 10-fold over the past decade to become one of the country's top five infectious diseases. The China Daily also quoted experts as saying that the growing economy has resulted in huge population movements and a large prostitution industry that has helped lead to a resurgence of the disease. The ministry of health said that the rate of mother-to-child transmissions jumped to 57 cases per 100,000 newborns between 2003 and 2008, up from a previous seven cases per 100,000. According to AFP, the report follows an article in the New England Journal of Medicine last month that said that one child was born with syphilis in China each hour as infected men pass it on to their wives, who pass it on to their fetuses. The report added that at least a third of homosexual men were also married due to social pressures, further increasing transmission to spouses. According to AFP, the spread in China is further fueled by social stigma that discourages sufferers from seeking treatment, experts say. The China Daily reported that China had 32,000 new reported infections in May, including two deaths. According to AFP, the China Daily said that six million Chinese women were believed involved in the sex trade, but other estimates have put the figure at twice as high. The New England Journal of Medicine article said that no other country has seen such a rapid rise in the disease since the discovery of penicillin, AFP reported. Syphilis is a bacterial infection which can easily be treated with antibiotics if diagnosed early, but if left untreated can lead to paralysis, blindness and death.
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