During 2017, there were 101,567 reported new diagnoses of syphilis (all stages), compared to 39,782 estimated new diagnoses of HIV infection in 2016 and 555,608 cases of gonorrhea in 2017.1, 2 Of syphilis cases, 30,644 were primary and secondary (P&S) syphilis, the earliest and most transmissible stages of syphilis. In 2017, the majority of P&S syphilis cases occurred among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM). In 2017, MSM accounted for 79.6% of all P&S syphilis cases among males in which sex of sex partner was known and 57.9% of all P&S syphilis cases overall. However, in recent years, the rate of P&S syphilis has been increasing among MSM as well as heterosexual men and women.

Congenital syphilis (syphilis passed from pregnant women to their babies) continues to be a concern in the United States. During 2017, 918 cases of congenital syphilis were reported, compared to an estimated 99 cases of perinatal HIV infection during 2016. 1 In 2017, congenital syphilis rates were 6.1 times and 3.5 times higher among infants born to black and Hispanic mothers (58.9 and 33.5 cases per 100,000 live births, respectively) compared to white mothers (9.7 cases per 100,000 live births).