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Four active syphilis cases were reported to the Lapeer County Health Department in September.

"It's easily treatable in the first stages," said Lapeer County Health Department Director Stephanie Simmons. "If not treated, the disease can be fatal."Ê

The Lapeer County cases are related to an ongoing outbreak in Genesee County. The neighboring county reported 95 cases reported this year. Two of those are congenital syphilis in babies born to mothers infected during pregnancy.

"In Lapeer County, the persons affected are both male and female, married and unmarried," Simmons said. "There is no single profile."

The last case of active syphilis reported in Lapeer County was in the late 1980s.

"I think part of the reason for the increase is there are no longer premarital blood tests," Simmons said. "Back a couple decades it was required of people getting married to have blood tests; they were testing for syphilis. Then the numbers having syphilis became so low it no longer made sense to require the test from a public safety standpoint."

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum. According to the Centers for Disease Control, syphilis is passed from person to person through direct contact with a syphilis sore which occur mainly on the external genitals, vagina, anus, or in the rectum. Sores also can occur on the lips and in the mouth. Transmission of the organism occurs during vaginal, anal, or oral sex. Pregnant women with the disease can pass it to the babies they are carrying.

Syphilis is not spread through contact with toilet seats, doorknobs, swimming pools, hot tubs, bathtubs, shared clothing, or eating utensils.

The disease is easy to treat in its early stages. A single injection of penicillin will cure a person who has had syphilis for less than a year. Additional doses are needed for someone having syphilis longer than a year.

It has often been called "the great imitator" because many of the signs and symptoms are indistinguishable from other diseases. And many people ignore the symptoms, which can easily be overlooked. In the first stage, a person usually has a single sore, called a chancre. The chancre vanishes without treatment and many people are unaware they have a problem.

The second stage is marked by a skin rash, mucous membrane lesions and/or flue like symptoms. The signs of secondary syphilis will go away with or without penicillin. But without treatment, the infection progresses into the late stages.

In the late stages, the disease may damage the internal organs, including the brain, nerves, eyes, heart, blood vessels, liver, bones, and joints. Signs and symptoms of the late stage of syphilis include difficulty coordinating muscle movements, paralysis, numbness, gradual blindness, and dementia. This damage may be serious enough to cause death.

"The best prevention to avoid sexually transmitted diseases, including syphilis, is total abstinence," said Lapeer County Health Department Medical Director Russell Bush M.D. "Using a condom can reduce the risk of syphilis but only when the infected area is protected."

Bush and Simmons encourage testing for those with past or present syphilis symptoms or those who have had sexual contact with someone with symptoms. Anyone with high risk behaviors including substance use, unprotected sex or multiple partners should be tested.

For information, visit: http://www.cdc.gov/std/syphilis/STDFact-Syphilis.htm.

Susan Younger may be reached at (810) 664-0811, Ext. 8122 or susan.younger@lapeergroup.com.