The agency is working with doctors and other public health officials to promote recommendations for STD and HIV testing. The CDC is also looking to increase STD testing in places other than doctors' offices, such as bathhouses and other settings where gay and bisexual men meet, Douglas said.
Although the majority of new cases of syphilis are among gay and bisexual men, syphilis is also increasing among women and African-Americans, officials said.
"The syphilis rate among women increased between 2006 and 2007 for the third consecutive year after a decade of decline," Douglas said. "The rate of syphilis among women increased 10 percent from 2006."
And, syphilis rates increased last year among African-Americans for the fourth consecutive year after more than a decade of decline. The rate of syphilis among African-Americans increased 22 percent from 2006 to 2007, Weinstock said.
Although the rate of syphilis infections among whites and African-Americans is narrowing, there is still a disparity. "In 2007, the syphilis rate among African-Americans was seven times higher than among whites. This represents a substantial decline from 1999 when the syphilis rate among African-Americans was 29 times that of whites," Weinstock said.
This decline represents a drop in cases among African-Americans and an increase in infections among white gay and bisexual men, Weinstock noted.
Syphilis is caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum. An estimated 36,000 cases of the disease were reported in the United States in 2006. The germ is passed from person to person through direct contact with a syphilis sore, with sores mainly occurring on the external genitals, vagina, anus, or in the rectum, according to the CDC.
Early stages of infection are easily cured with the antibiotic penicillin. Late stages of the disease can develop in about 15 percent of people who have not been treated. Untreated syphilis can eventually damage internal organs, including the brain, nerves, eyes, heart, blood vessels, liver, bones, and joints. The damage can be serious enough to cause death, according to the CDC.
More information
For more on STDs, visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
