Cook County commissioners sound alarm on syphilis spike

Two new public awareness campaigns aim to address a recent rise in syphilis cases in Cook County.

The efforts, both geared toward pregnant people or people looking to get pregnant, will draw attention to congenital syphilis, a rare but deadly form of the infection that's passed to babies in the womb.

Syphilis cases have been increasing in Cook County. The most concerning part of the spike is that more babies are being born with syphilis, Commissioner Monica Gordon said during a news conference announcing the campaigns in the Loop.

"This is not just a health care crisis, but a call to action for all of us that the consequences of this disease, particularly when passed from mother to child, are devastating yet entirely preventable," said Gordon, who represents the 5th District.

"Syphilis, particularly congenital syphilis, has reached a critical point in Cook County, and the sharp rise in cases demands our immediate attention."

The first campaign, called “Syphilis Stops With Me,” is focused on Black or Hispanic women ages 18 to 44 who are pregnant or planning on becoming pregnant. The aim is to get them all the information they need to have a safe pregnancy, said Dr. LaMar Hasbrouck, the chief operating officer for the county health department.

The other will be a dedicated webpage called "Every Mother Every Child." That page, launching in the coming weeks, will be a "one-stop, virtual destination for things that mothers and pregnant persons need to know before, during and after their pregnancy," Hasbrouck said. The site will also offer free syphilis tests people can order by mail.

Twelve county commissioners spoke on Tuesday and each emphasized the need for greater public awareness and education about syphilis and the importance of regular testing for disease or infection spread through sex and safe sex practices.

Untreated syphilis can cause miscarriages, premature births and stillbirths. Babies also have a high chance of contracting syphilis in the womb. Congenital syphilis can cause infant death, organ damage, fetal anemia, heart failure, seizures, damaged vision and hearing and long-term health and developmental complications for surviving babies.

While congenital syphilis is rare, public health officials say the life-threatening infection is almost always preventable if caught and treated in time.

Cases of congenital syphilis tripled from 2020 to 2023 in suburban Cook County, jumping from four to 12, according to the most recent sexually transmitted infection surveillance report from the Cook County Department of Public Health.

Between 2021 and 2023, nearly 90% of those congenital syphilis cases involved Black or Hispanic babies, Hasbrouck said. And most of the cases were detected in the southern and western parts of Cook County, he added.

"That's what's very, very alarming here," he said. "The key is awareness. The key is prenatal care because when you go to prenatal care, and you keep up with those visits, you're going to get screened for this. You're going to get treated."

In Chicago, cases jumped from 17 to 46 between 2020 and 2022, the Sun-Times previously reported.