Michigan: Kalamazoo County Notifies Health Providers to Watch for Syphilis

Kalamazoo County health officials are asking area health care providers to help curb syphilis infections, which have been rising locally and statewide. While county incidence is still low compared with other STDs, primary and secondary syphilis diagnoses have increased every year since 2008. Kalamazoo County saw seven cases last year, the highest since 2001.

"I would say we are pretty close to what our total count for 2010 was," said Michelle Thorne, clinical services director for the county Health and Community Services Department (KCHCS). Last month, the department sent an advisory to hospitals, physicians, clinics, and regional health departments.

KCHCS said it is working with the state Department of Community Health on contact tracing, testing, and treatment efforts. The advisory notes high-risk groups associated with the primary syphilis cases include individuals with multiple sex partners; men who have sex with men; MSM co-infected with HIV; and individuals who trade sex for drugs and money.

The state's largest outbreak, in Genesee County in 2008, was mostly among heterosexuals. The 2009 uptick in Ingham and Kent counties and in Oakland County last year were mostly among MSM, including many co-infected with HIV.

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