It sounds like an echo of a news story from the 18th or 19th centuries, or even earlier, but it is current: in Argentina, as in many other places in the world, cases of syphilis are multiplying and have reached historic peaks. Official data, prepared by the Ministry of Health and released this week, warn that the number of people who have contracted this sexually transmitted infection has increased by 42% in six years. In 2023, 32,293 new cases were detected and for this year experts predict similar figures, the highest recorded in the last three decades. The main reason behind the reappearance of a condition that was once believed to have been eradicated would be the decline in condom use.
“Syphilis continues to be a significant and growing public health problem,” warns a new edition of the National Epidemiological Bulletinpublished this Monday by the Ministry of Health. “Syphilis notifications at the national and regional level have shown an upward trend in recent years. The most affected populations are people between 15 and 34 years old,” it details.
The infection curve has been rising in Argentina since 2010, when fewer than 5,000 people were registered as sick, as had occurred annually between 1994 and 2001. In the last 15 years, syphilis has not stopped growing, except during the coronavirus pandemic, in 2020 and 2021.
The official report focuses on the period 2018-2023. In that period, a total of 129,620 cases were reported in the country. At the beginning of the series there were 22,734 and last year they exceeded 32,000. In the same period, the incidence rate of the disease also increased. While in 2018 it was 51 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, in 2023 it was 69. The age group with the highest incidence rate is the one that includes people between 20 and 24 years old, with 219 cases per 100,000. This is followed by the groups from 25 to 29 years old (rate of 185) and from 30 to 34 years old (126). More women are affected (55.4%) between 15 and 39 years old; above 50 the number of men is higher.
Syphilis is a disease caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum and is transmitted primarily through sexual contact with an infected person, usually through genital or mouth ulcers. It can also spread through perinatal transmission or blood transfusions. The infection can be cured with antibiotics, but can cause serious health problems if not treated in time.
Why are infections increasing steadily? “Although there is no hard data, what we are seeing are changes in sexual habits, especially among young people,” explains Andrés Burke Viale, a doctor specializing in public health. “On the one hand, there is misuse or a decrease in the use of condoms. On the other hand, there is an increase in what is known as casual sex,” he adds. “The infection data is led by young women. In addition to new habits, this may be due to the fact that in Argentina, those who have the most access to health services and who are the most alert are women. Men access them at late or acute stages of the disease.”
In this scenario, “it is necessary to reintroduce the correct use of condoms to the entire population, regardless of age group, not only to avoid unwanted pregnancies but also to avoid sexually transmitted infections,” says Burke Viale, professor of the Department of Public Health at the Faculty of Medicine (UBA). To do this, the role of the State is central, he says, and warns about the lack of funding for health policies under the Government of Javier Milei. “The budget for the Sexual Health Program, created by law in 2005, has only been spent 20% so far this year. This program not only provides public policies for early diagnosis and treatment, but also for prevention through the purchase of condoms. In the provinces today there is a lack of condoms that were distributed by the national State. This is not a minor issue, States all over the world do it.”
Syphilis and other sexually transmitted infections are a global problem, not just in Argentina. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported last May that in America cases of syphilis increased by 30% between 2020 and 2022 among people aged 15 to 49. And in Europe, also this year and with data from 2022, “a worrying increase” in syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia infections was detected, which is why the European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (ECDC) raised “the urgent need to improve prevention, access to testing and effective treatments to address this public health challenge.”
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