Gays account for
71% of N.C. county’s syphilis cases

Although newly diagnosed syphilis cases have plunged 80% in Robeson County, N.C., since 2001, gay men continue to be significantly impacted by the disease, accounting for 71% of the new cases reported so far this year, reports The Fayetteville Observer. African-Americans and Native Americans accounted for most of the cases occurring among gay men, say county health officials. Aggressive syphilis screening and education campaigns funded through $1.4 million in grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the state health department have led to the drop in syphilis infections, says Karen Woodell, county syphilis-elimination coordinator. Woodell says she hopes in the near future to launch Internet-based prevention and education campaigns that target gay men because many men who have sex with men use the Internet to meet sex partners. (Advocate.com)