After the outbreak, Shawnee County is responsible for more than a quarter of Kansas’ syphilis cases

A syphilis outbreak in Shawnee County now accounts for more than a quarter of Kansas’ syphilis cases this year.

“The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) and the Shawnee County Health Department (SCHD) have collaborated in response to a person-to-person syphilis outbreak,” KDHE reports this on its website. “Those affected have reported experiencing homelessness, unstable housing, and/or drug use with or without injection. The current outbreak is affecting both men and women.”

KDHE infectious disease reporting statistics show 29 primary syphilis cases and 51 secondary syphilis cases among Shawnee County residents so far this year. Statewide, there have been 122 primary syphilis cases and 166 secondary syphilis cases this year.

For 2024, Shawnee County will account for approximately 24% of primary syphilis cases in Kansas and approximately 31% of secondary syphilis cases in the state.

A syphilis outbreak in Shawnee County

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease that is transmitted by direct contact with sores, during unprotected sex and from a pregnant person to the fetus.

Syphilis has five phases: the primary phase involves ulcers in various parts of the body; the secondary stage includes swollen lymph nodes, patchy hair loss and fever; the latent phase is when no symptoms occur; the tertiary phase is less common but usually occurs after 10-30 years of syphilis and is extremely dangerous; and without treatment, syphilis can in some cases reach the brain and cause neurosyphilis, ocular syphilis and otosyphilis.

Disease outbreak information from KDHE shows that the local outbreak of syphilis began in May 2023 and was communicated to health care providers and local health departments. There was no press release notifying the public of the outbreak or its conclusion in July.

“KDHE did not issue press releases regarding the syphilis outbreak in Shawnee County because it was limited to a specific population within the county and the general public was not at risk,” said Jill Bronaugh, a spokesperson for KDHE. “We have been using our Health Alert Network (HAN) system to keep local health departments and healthcare providers informed of the outbreak.”

A Network alert dated January 19 from KDHE to local providers and health departments reported 146 confirmed cases of syphilis among Shawnee County residents between May and December 2023. That was “a 90% increase compared to the same period in 2022.”

Bronaugh said there are currently no syphilis outbreaks in Shawnee County or the state. However, the KDHE website still has syphilis listed among current outbreaks.

The outbreak, which affected both men and women, was notable because “historically, outbreaks have primarily affected men who have sex with men.” Health officials said there is evidence that “the epidemiology of syphilis infections is evolving,” meaning that in addition to just gay men, other populations “should be considered for testing and treatment.”

“The number of cases of syphilis among all people increased between 2017 and 2021 and there has been an increase in primary and secondary syphilis among those reporting use of injection and non-injection drugs and those reporting having sexual partners who use drugs ”, says the KDHE. said.

The City of Topeka media team declined to comment.

Hepatitis An outbreak over after 123 cases in two years

Another long outbreak that followed the KDHE ended after two years.

The KDHE reported that “the personal Hepatitis A outbreak in Shawnee County was declared over on July 10, 2024 with a total of 123 cases.” The outbreak led to 39 hospitalizations but no deaths.

The outbreak started in August 2022 state health officials launched a dashboard in January 2024 to monitor the outbreak.

Hepatitis A is a contagious liver infection caused by a virus that can be spread through sex or other close contact with an infected person and through contaminated food and water. In the Shawnee County outbreak, officials said the disease spread through close personal contact, and not through food, drinks or contaminated food handlers.

Officials said the biggest risk factors were current or past drug use, both injection and non-injection drugs, homelessness, group living and incarceration. KDHE data shows the outbreak peaked between October 2023 and January 2024.

Kansas has recorded 44 cases of hepatitis A statewide this year, including 34 in Shawnee County.

This article originally appeared in Topeka Capital-Journal: Shawnee County’s syphilis outbreak infects 80 before it ends