Sask. syphilis outbreak continues as doctors struggle to find patients
by Zak VesceraKhan said he's worried by a newer trend driving syphilis infections: sex fuelled by crystal meth.
Six months since an outbreak was declared, syphilis continues to surge in Saskatchewan as doctors struggle to track down at-risk patients.
The Saskatchewan Health Authority and Indigenous Services Canada declared an outbreak in June after 42 cases of syphilis were diagnosed in the North Battleford-Lloydminster area in the first six months of the year.
Saskatchewan has a relatively low rate of syphilis compared to other Canadian provinces. However, as of October, the Ministry of Health counted 277 cases of syphilis so far in 2019 compared to just 85 in 2016 — an increase of more than 300 per cent.
Indigenous Services Canada also reported 83 new cases across the province’s 82 Indigenous communities, a staggering 2,000 per cent increase since 2017.
Northern medical health officer Dr. Mandiangu Nsungu said the biggest challenge has been tracking down people who have had sexual contact with existing patients.
Nsungu said health care workers have only been able to locate 65 per cent of contacts, of which 80 per cent have tested positive for syphilis so far.
“That tells us there are a good proportion of people who are infected who have not been detected yet,” Nsungu said.
Syphilis can incubate for up to three months after contact. When initial symptoms do present, they fade quickly on their own, meaning many infected people do not realize they have the disease.
“The disease can evolve in silence,” Nsungu said.
Once identified, syphilis is treatable and curable. Nsungu said 90 per cent of identified cases have been successfully treated and he was “encouraged” that newer cases are being identified earlier, suggesting the health authority’s outreach campaign is having an effect.
Khan said most new cases were young people and women of child-bearing age who were having unprotected sex with multiple partners.
Forty-three per cent of cases this year were women compared to just seven per cent in 2017, creating concern the disease could spread to a newborn child.
The leading risk factor in new cases is a previous STI. But Khan said he’s worried by a newer trend driving syphilis infections: sex fuelled by crystal meth.
“We also saw crystal meth play a role,” Khan said. “When you use meth, you usually aren’t too worried about using a condom.”
Saskatchewan’s outbreak follows similar trends across Canada and in the United States. The Public Health Agency of Canada estimates syphilis rates in Alberta, for example, increased more than 800 per cent this year.
It’s also not the only STI on the rise; rates of gonorrhea in Saskatchewan have increased more than 80 per cent since 2016. In the 2017-18 federal budget, $4.3 million was allotted to fight the spread of STIs in Saskatchewan.
Heather Hale, executive director of Saskatoon Sexual Health, said the silver lining of the rising figures is that more people are getting tested and catching the illness early. Her centre has seen a 72 per cent increase in the number of tests conducted compared to the same time period last year.
“If you’re doing more testing, that usually means you’re going to have more incidents,” Hale said.
For people at risk, the best step is to seek medical advice — either from a local physician or any sexual health clinic.
“Starting that conversation is an incredibly important step,” Hale said.
Nsungu said all members of the public “have a part to play” in limiting the disease’s spread.
“We need to take precautions in the first place so we minimize the risk of getting the disease,” he said. “And if we don’t know our status or we are in doubt, the best thing to do is get tested.”
