Variations in a gene within the family of bacteria that causes syphilis may hold clinical, epidemiological and evolutionary significance, researchers at Emory University in Atlanta have found.

Startling government research on teenage girls and sexually transmitted diseases sends a blunt message to kids who think they’re immune: It’s liable to happen to you or someone you know

New syphilis cases in the Houston area rose an unprecedented 28 percent in the first half of 2007, an increase the Houston Department of Health and Human Services (HDHHS) considers an outbreak.

After leveling off for more than two years – and declining in 2006 – new syphilis cases spiked in New York City during the first three months of 2007. The Health Department announced today that doctors reported 260 new cases of primary and secondary syphilis during January, February and March, compared with 128 cases during the same period last year.

Congenital syphilis is a major preventable public health problem in many developing countries, frequently causing stillbirths or neonatal death and disabling children who survive. Often undiagnosed or untreated, syphilis is passed from mother to child - even when mothers take part in prenatal programs to prevent the spread of HIV.

Screening pregnant women with newer, rapid syphilis tests would improve the survival and health of babies, according to research from Haiti.

Armed with more than a decade's worth of statistics, researchers are sounding a new alarm about growing rates of syphilis among gay and bisexual men.