[SWAF-Potluck] Syphilis rates soar in Vancouver as testing urged...

[Aanya Mas-sage]

For those of you who may not have the information, here is a link to the
contact info for the CDC STI clinic on 12th avenue (near VGH). They
have always treated me with the utmost of respect:
http://www.bccdc.ca/SexualHealth/ContactUsSTI/default.htm

Results often within a week. Full HIV results within 2weeks.

Play safe all!
Aanya

On Friday, August 22, 2014, Andy Sorfleet <a.sorfleet at gmail.com> wrote:

> I have a few comments. First, the Medical Officer of Health is calling
> this an "epidemic" in this article. Syphilis rates in Vancouver and
> Lower Mainland are their highest in 32 years.
>
> Secondly, I cannot stress this enough: syphilis testing becomes much
> less reliable, and treatment more and more ineffective the longer one
> has syphilis. We lost someone very dear to us, who had several
> negative test results (including 4 lumbar punctures) and several
> courses of treatment, who eventually was found to have lesions on his
> brain, before he fell off a bridge and died.
>
> Self examination and a good education about what syphilis symptoms
> look like are key to diagnosing syphilis and treating when one is
> first infected.
>
> In solidarity,
>
> =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>
> http://www.theglobeandmail.com/
> GLOBE AND MAIL
> Thursday, August 21, 2014
>
> Camille Baines, The Canadian Press
>
>
>
> Syphilis rates soar in Vancouver as testing urged for men who have sex
> with men
>
> Syphilis rates in Vancouver are at their highest in 32 years,
> prompting public health officials to issue a warning to the group at
> greatest risk -- men who have sex with men.
>
> Medical health officer Dr. Reka Gustafson of Vancouver Coastal Health
> said Thursday that 561 new syphilis cases were reported in British
> Columbia last year, and 86 per cent of them were among gay and
> bisexual men.
>
> She said syphilis rates in 2012 across the Lower Mainland were already
> at their highest in 30 years, and the numbers climbed further in 2013.
>
> Men who have more than one partner at the same time are at greater
> risk of becoming infected, Gustafson said.
>
> The highest rates in Vancouver are among men between 30 and 49, though
> infections are increasing in all age groups.
>
> She urged men who have sex with men to get tested every three to six
> months through blood tests available at doctors' offices, walk-in
> clinics, the B.C. Centre for Disease Control and other facilities.
>
> Treatment involves antibiotics, especially penicillin.
>
> "If you're a sexually active individual, especially a gay man in
> Vancouver, you're at risk for syphilis. The earlier you're diagnosed,
> the easier the treatment is and also the less likely you are to
> transmit to someone else. And the treatment is curative."
>
> Syphilis is spread primarily by oral, vaginal or anal sex and if left
> untreated the disease can lead to blindness, hearing loss, brain
> damage and even death.
>
> An infected person may not have any symptoms or initial ulcers or
> sores resembling bug bites on genitals and rashes on the palms and
> soles of the feet may disappear while the infection circulates through
> the body, Gustafson said.
>
> "So awareness becomes really, really important. The initial symptoms,
> even if you have them, including the initial ulcers, can be painless."
>
> Many factors are involved in the syphilis epidemic among gay and
> bisexual men but behaviour could be a key issue, Gustafson said.
>
> "Our syphilis outbreak right now in Vancouver is affecting adult men,
> and a disproportionate rate are HIV-positive -- about 69 per cent. Men
> who are HIV-positive typically have sex with other men who are
> similarly affected."
>
> But the idea of preventing HIV transmission by having unprotected sex
> with someone of a similar HIV status may backfire when it comes to
> syphilis.
>
> Gustafson said transmission doesn't necessarily involve intercourse
> because the disease can be passed on through oral sex or close
> skin-to-skin contact.
>
> While rates of syphilis among men began to increase around 2003 and
> 2005, there was a dip in 2007 before a spike in 2010, she said.
>
> Sometimes a temporary immunity to a sexually transmitted disease
> reduces rates before they rise again, Gustafson said, adding cities
> across Canada and elsewhere are struggling to deal with the issue.
>
> "Practise safe sex, have fewer sexual partners and get tested and
> treated as soon as possible. Make sure all your partners are also
> tested and treated."
>
> The latest Public Health Agency of Canada report in 2010 said that
> while reported syphilis rates across the country had declined overall,
> they started climbing sharply among men in 2001.
>
> That report also cited the highest rates among men who have sex with
> men, as is the case in the United States and Europe.
>
> "The causes for these increases are complex and include demographic
> shifts, as well as changing sexual attitudes and social contexts
> related to increased risky sexual behaviour," the report said.
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-- 
Warmest regards,

*Aanya*
778-848-7666
http://aanyamassage.blogspot.com
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