'Push the panic button': Sask. sees surge in syphilis cases
Medical health officers are warning about a spike in syphilis cases in Saskatchewan this year.
“So it’s more or less, trying to push the panic button to enable individuals to know that we are dealing with an outbreak in Saskatchewan,” Northern Inter-Tribal Health Authority (NITHA) Medical Health Officer Dr. Nnamidi Ndubuka said.
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection spread through direct contact with a sore or rash through unprotected sex.
The most affected age group is people between the ages of 14 to 39; 43 percent male and 57 percent female.
Over 55 per cent of men and 49 per cent of women infected with syphilis reported no condom use as a risk factor, Ndubuka said.
Nearly one in three men and women say sexual contact with a partner with an unknown infection resulted in transmission.
Alcohol use and non-intravenous drug use at the time of transmission were also risk factors.
Ndubuka says part of the strategy to reduce transmission is an awareness campaign NITHA and partner health agencies started in May with information posters and social media posts.
Health agencies are providing information about how to prevent transmission and clinics have increased screening for all sexually transmitted diseases and HIV.
In NITHA communities, community health workers have made free condoms more readily accessible in public spaces.
“We also want all communities, outside the province, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, to all walk together to reduce transmission,” said Ndubuka.
NITHA serves 33 First Nations communities with a population of 55,000 in central and northern Saskatchewan.
The regional medical health officer for Indigenous Services Canada in Saskatchewan, Dr. Ibrahim Khan, says 411 infectious syphilis cases were diagnosed in on-reserve First Nations communities from Jan. 1 to June 30 this year.
“Syphilis can spread very fast if people are having unprotected sex and there is no access to treatment or care,” said Khan.
That’s a 928 percent increase in cases since the last major spike in 2019 when 40 cases were reported in the same timeframe.
The Saskatchewan Ministry of Health says infectious syphilis cases in the province increased to 1,940 last year from 924 in 2020.
ISC says it is working with the Saskatchewan Health Authority and family doctors to provide culturally grounded care to make people feel comfortable seeking screening tests and treatment.
Khan says since the last jump in cases in 2019, there have been six stillbirths due to syphilis and 19 cases of early congenital syphilis cases are under investigation by health officials.
“When you have syphilis and you are not able to seek care and you are not on treatment and for example, if you are a pregnant woman, certainly there are some really deadly consequences and that is that the baby is born with syphilis or the baby is born dead in the womb,” he said.
Treatment of syphilis is publically funded. Khan says a single injection of Benzathine and follow-up care is the typical course of treatment.
Left untreated, syphilis leads to organ and neurological damage and may cause death.
“Indigenous women are the most disadvantaged in terms of access to care in terms of barriers to care, racism, poverty, domestic abuse and violence,” he said.
Symptoms include a rash and lesions in the general area where bodily fluids are exchanged during sexual contact. Symptoms may not always be visible.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
'It was joy': Trapped B.C. orca calf eats seal meat, putting rescue on hold
A rescue operation for an orca calf trapped in a remote tidal lagoon off Vancouver Island has been put on hold after it started eating seal meat thrown in the water for what is believed to be the first time.
Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
Sask. father found guilty of withholding daughter to prevent her from getting COVID-19 vaccine
Michael Gordon Jackson, a Saskatchewan man accused of abducting his daughter to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, has been found guilty for contravention of a custody order.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
B.C. judge orders shared dog custody for exes who both 'clearly love Stella'
In a first-of-its-kind ruling, a B.C. judge has awarded a former couple joint custody of their dog.
Saskatoon police to search landfill for remains of woman missing since 2020
Saskatoon police say they will begin searching the city’s landfill for the remains of Mackenzie Lee Trottier, who has been missing for more than three years.
Shivering for health: The myths and truths of ice baths explained
In a climate of social media-endorsed wellness rituals, plunging into cold water has promised to aid muscle recovery, enhance mental health and support immune system function. But the evidence of such benefits sits on thin ice, according to researchers.