Japan syphilis tally tops 3,300 cases
Japan’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) has reported 3,332 syphilis cases through the first week of April.
Tokyo has seen the most cases to date with 816, followed by Osaka with 416 and Fukuoka with 200.
The total to date is less than the 3,785 cases reported in the first 14 weeks of 2023.
The total number of syphilis cases confirmed in 2023 reached 14,906, the highest since 1999 when the current survey method was introduced.
The NIID added data on pregnant women infected with syphilis to its statistics in 2019.
A total of 383 pregnant women were infected with syphilis in 2023, the highest number for Japan since 2019.
Figures for 2023 also showed that the number of babies with congenital syphilis also reached a record high.
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Syphilis is a sexually-transmitted disease (STD) that can cause long-term complications if not treated correctly. Symptoms of syphilis in adults include a painless sore that will go away without treatment followed by a non-itchy body rash. If left untreated syphilis can lead to damage through the body including neurological and cardiovascular complications. Syphilis also increases the risk of HIV infection and, for women, can cause problems during pregnancy and for the newborn.