Prevalence and Incidence of Syphilis

About prevalence and incidence statistics: The term 'prevalence' of Syphilis usually refers to the estimated population of people who are managing Syphilis at any given time. The term 'incidence' of Syphilis refers to the annual diagnosis rate, or the number of new cases of Syphilis diagnosed each year. Hence, these two statistics types can differ: a short-lived disease like flu can have high annual incidence but low prevalence, but a life-long disease like diabetes has a low annual incidence but high prevalence. For more information see about prevalence and incidence statistics.

Incidence (annual) of Syphilis: 70,000 cases (NIAID; CDC 2001)
Incidence Rate: approx 1 in 3,885 or 0.03% or 70,000 people in USA [about data]
Worldwide incidence of Syphilis:12 million worldwide cases
Incidence of Syphilis: An estimated 70,000 sexually transmitted infections with Treponema pallidum, the cause of syphilis, occur each year in the United States.¹ ... In 1997, 8,550 cases of primary and secondary syphilis in the United States were reported to the CDC, a case rate of 3.2/100,000.¹ ... The incidence of syphilis has increased and decreased dramatically in recent years, with more than 11,000 cases reported in 1996.²

Incidence statistics about Syphilis: The following statistics relate to the incidence of Syphilis:

70,000 new cases annually in America (Tracking The Hidden Epidemics, CDC, 2002)
37,977 cases annually in the USA (1998)
31,575 new cases of syphilis occurred annually in the US 2000 (Health, United States: 2002, NCHS, CDC)
35,628 annual cases including 6,657 primary/secondary cases notified in USA 1999 (MMWR 1999)
0.29 per 100,000 in Canada 2000³
Estimated 70,000 new cases each year in the USA 2002 (Trends in STD’s in the US, CDC, 2002)
2.2 cases per 100,000 people in America 2000 (NCHS, 2003)
613 new cases of syphilis in England and Wales 2001(PHLS, London, 2002)
605% increase in syphilis incidence in England and Wales 1996-2001(PHLS, London, 2002)
8.3 new cases of syphilis per 100,000 population was notified in Australia 2002 (Yohannes K, Roche P, Blumer C et al. 2004, Australia’s Health 2004, AIHW)
1,627 new cases of syphilis was notified in Australia 2002 (Yohannes K, Roche P, Blumer C et al. 2004, Australia’s Health 2004, AIHW)

Footnotes:
1. excerpt from Sexually Transmitted Diseases Statistics, NIAID Fact Sheet: NIAID
2. excerpt from Sexually Transmitted Diseases, NIAID Fact Sheet: NIAID
3. Notifiable Diseases Online, PPHB, Canada, 2000

Last revision: June 18, 2003

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