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Analysis of U.S. surveillance data found that HIV coinfection occurs in about 1 in 12 adolescents diagnosed with early syphilis, though the proportion has declined in recent years. Among 28,965 adolescents ages 15 to 19 with primary, secondary, or early latent syphilis from 2014–2023, 9% also had HIV, as reported in MedPage Today reporting on the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. Additionally, 27% of the adolescents had unknown HIV status. In terms of trends, the share who had both infections fell from 11% in 2014 to 6% in 2023. HIV coinfection was more common in adolescents with secondary (10%) or early latent (9%) syphilis than in primary disease patients (5%). About 17% of male adolescents who have sex with males had HIV compared with 3% of males who only had female partners and 1% of females. Rates were also higher among Black adolescents (12%) and those living in the South (10%). Most coinfected adolescents were diagnosed outside sexually transmitted infection (STI) clinics. The findings support expanded HIV testing and more importantly the opportunity for STI co-testing.
Progress across the globe: There’s some good news in STI trends. The World Health Organization (WHO) last week certified Denmark for the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis—the first European country to do so. Elimination means testing and treating at least 95 out of every 100 pregnant women and keeping new infant infections below 50 per 100 000 births across several years. According to WHO, hepatitis B is the country’s next elimination initiative.