A new study highlights the high global prevalence of syphilis among men who have sex with men, according to a news release from the World Health Organization (WHO).
The study lead by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK, and published in the Lancet Global Health presents the first global syphilis prevalence estimate among men who have sex with men.
Findings from this global review show that men who have sex with men have high burden of syphilis infection, with significant variation across countries and regions. The global pooled prevalence of syphilis among men who have sex with men was 7.5% during 2000-2020, as compared to the most recent estimate of syphilis among men in the general population in 2016, 0.5%.
The proportion of men who have sex with men with syphilis was highest in settings where HIV prevalence was greater than 5% and in low and -middle income countries. Sub-analysis showed that pooled prevalence estimates were higher between 2015-2020 compared to the prior 5 years in half of the global regions assessed, and several countries are reporting a high and sustained increase in syphilis infection among men who have sex with men.
Globally, there were an estimated 7 million new syphilis infections in 2020.
