Oh, Canada!
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'Horrifying' number of syphilis infections in Alberta reaching pre-antibiotic levels
Despite advances in health care, the number of syphilis infections is skyrocketing across Alberta, reaching their highest levels in about 70 years.
Cases of the disease in Alberta have exploded since 2000, when only 17 were reported. By 2020, there were 2,509 cases in the province.
"The highest rates we've seen since the 1940s, which is, of course, the pre-antibiotic era," said Dr. Ameeta Singh, an infectious disease specialist who works at Edmonton's Royal Alexandra Hospital.
"Despite all of our advances, we are seeing a horrifying rate of syphilis cases."
Syphilis was cited by Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta's chief medical officer of health, as one of the worrisome health threats going unchecked while resources are tied up with COVID-19. Devoting more resources to those threats was the key reason for Alberta's controversial rolling back of COVID-19 measures, announced in late July.
The disease is a bacterial infection, usually spread by sexual contact, that infects millions around the world each year. Without treatment, syphilis may attack major organs resulting in death.
Almost half the cases were in Edmonton, which had about three times as many as were reported in Calgary. In fact, Edmonton has one of the highest syphilis rates in Canada.
In the first three months of 2021, there were 765 cases reported in Alberta.
