Health Indicator Report of Syphilis Incidence - Congenital
Syphilis may be passed to a baby by an infected mother during pregnancy and can lead to serious health problems. Syphilis has been linked to premature births, stillbirths, and neonatal death. Untreated infants that survive tend to develop problems in multiple organs, including the brain, eyes, ears, heart, liver, spleen, skin, teeth, and bones.[https://www.cdc.gov/std/syphilis/stdfact-congenital-syphilis.htm ^1^]
Notes
This is Healthy New Jersey 2020 (HNJ2020) Objective STD-5. Data for White, Black, and Asian do not include Hispanics. Hispanic ethnicity includes persons of any race. Due to the extremely low number of cases (<=25 in any given year), all rates presented here are considered to be statistically unreliable. [https://www-doh.state.nj.us/doh-shad/home/ReliabilityValidity.html More info]Data Source
Communicable Disease Reporting and Surveillance System (CRDSS); Sexually Transmitted Disease Program; Division of HIV/AIDS, STD and TB Services; New Jersey Department of Health; [http://www.nj.gov/health/hivstdtb/stds/]Definition
Rate of new cases of congenital syphilis per 100,000 live birthsNumerator
Number of reported congenital syphilis casesDenominator
Number of live birthsHealthy People Objective: Reduce congenital syphilis
U.S. Target: 9.6 new cases per 100,000 live birthsState Target: 6.4 new cases per 100,000 live births
Other Objectives
'''Revised Healthy New Jersey 2020 Objective STD-5''': Reduce the congenital syphilis incidence rate per 100,000 live births to 6.4 for the total population, 2.2 among Whites, 29.5 among Blacks, 5.5 among Hispanics, and 0.0 among Asians. '''Original Healthy New Jersey 2020 Objective STD-5''': Reduce the congenital syphilis incidence rate per 100,000 live births to 4.0 among all births, 0.0 among Whites and Asians, 11.0 among Blacks, and 3.2 among Hispanics.How Are We Doing?
The incidence of congenital syphilis decreased dramatically in New Jersey from 77.2 per 1,000 live births in 1998 to 2.8 in 2010. From 2013 through 2015, no cases of congenital syphilis were reported in New Jersey. However, twelve cases were reported in 2016, thirteen cases in 2017, fourteen in 2018 and again in 2019, and 25 cases in 2020.What Is Being Done?
The New Jersey Department of Health's Sexually Transmitted Disease Program vigorously investigates all females who have a positive serology for syphilis from obstetric clinics and prenatal programs to insure appropriate treatment is given prior to child birth.Evidence-based Practices
All pregnant women should be tested for syphilis at the first prenatal visit and those at high-risk should be tested more than once during pregnancy. [https://www.cdc.gov/std/syphilis/stdfact-congenital-syphilis.htm ^1^]Available Services
STD Testing Services: [http://nj.gov/health/hivstdtb/stds/locations.shtml]Health Program Information
NJDOH Sexually Transmitted Disease Program: [http://nj.gov/health/std/index.shtml]
Page Content Updated On 07/05/2022,
Published on 07/05/2022
