Tennessee doctors seeing alarming STI trend in pregnant women

HAMILTON COUNTY, Tenn. — Syphilis is making its way around Tennessee.

And it’s a troubling trend that doctors say is rising among pregnant women in the state.

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease that can cause symptoms like a sore throat, headaches, and fevers.

But it can also be passed from a mother to an unborn baby at any time.

The STI can be treated with antibiotics when it is found early.

But if you are pregnant, severe cases can cause lifelong issues for unborn child.

It’s often called “the quiet killer.”

Tennessee doctors say they are seeing a rapid surge in syphilis cases in the state, especially in pregnant women.

Hamilton County saw a 235 percent increase in cases from 2017 to 2021.

Doctors say they are especially seeing a spike in congenital syphilis.

This is when a pregnant woman passes the infection onto her baby.

Doctors at Vanderbilt say this surge means more testing during pregnancy is needed.

One doctor says 70 percent of pregnant women with syphilis have inadequate access to prenatal care, where they can get regular testing.

Dr. Walter Dehority, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital, says…

“Syphilis can infect you and not cause problems for years to even decades later. There’s been a tenfold increase in congenital syphilis cases over the last 12 years. We used to see one case a day in the United States, we are now seeing 10 cases a day.”

Data from the Hamilton County Health Department shows the biggest spike in these cases within the Hispanic population.

Doctors say another problem contributing to this spike is a shortage of Bicillin, the medicine used to treat syphilis in pregnant women.