The rate of newly
diagnosed syphilis cases is on the rise in New
Zealand, with gay and bisexual men accounting for nearly
three quarters of the new infections, health officials
in the country announced this week, reports Agence
France-Presse. Jane MacDonald, director of the
Wellington Sexual Health Service, says the number of
syphilis cases her clinic has seen during the past two
years is four times the number of cases in all of
the past 20 years combined. The Auckland Sexual Health
Service says it recorded 40 new cases between January 2002
and September 2004, 74% of which were diagnosed among
gay and bisexual men. A full report on the rise of
syphilis infections in New Zealand appears in the
current issue of the New Zealand Medical
Journal. (The Advocate)