Number of Alberta babies born with syphilis rising at alarming rate, experts say – CBC
Rate has jumped dramatically from 30.8 per 100,000 in 2018 to 169.1 last year
Jul 03, 2023
The province’s new sexually transmitted infections report shows the number of Alberta babies born with syphilis is rising at what experts say is an unacceptable and alarming rate.
In Alberta, the rate of babies born with syphilis has jumped dramatically, from 30.8 per 100,000 in 2018, to 169.1 last year.
Fifty babies — nearly one-fifth of cases — were stillborn during 2018 and 2022, the report reads.
Calgary obstetrician Dr. Stephanie Cooper has seen the devastating effects of syphilis first-hand in that time.
“It is absolutely excruciating,” Cooper said, who recalled a syphilis-related stillbirth last year.
“Seeing a woman lose a baby due to a preventable causes is heartbreaking.”
Syphilis can cause serious health problems and stillbirths.
