The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has launched an anonymous consultation program for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) at 13 hospitals nationwide, offering free syphilis testing for people under the age of 24, following a 6 percent rise in syphilis cases in the first half of the year.
The program, which began on Tuesday last week, provides free syphilis screening and STI consultations, CDC Division of Chronic Diseases deputy head Chan Pei-chun (詹珮君) old a routine news conference yesterday.
Citing the latest CDC data, she said Taiwan recorded 4,912 new syphilis cases from January to last month, including 956 cases among people aged 13 to 24.
Photo: Lin Hui-chin, Taipei Times
That figure represents a 6 percent increase in overall infections and a 13 percent rise among the demographic compared with the same period last year, she said.
It also means that the number of syphilis cases among young Taiwanese has increased for the fourth consecutive year, she added.
In contrast, the number of new AIDS and gonorrhea cases declined to 438 and 3,048 respectively — down 14 percent and 19 percent year-on-year, Chan said.
Young people worried about syphilis or HIV should not hesitate to get checked at a hospital, which takes only one drop of blood and delivers results in about 30 minutes, she said.
Those who test positive are eligible for partial coverage under the National Health Insurance system, she added.
The program’s consultation services are protected under medical privacy rules, she said, adding that they could be provided via phone, e-mail or the Line messenger app.
Participating hospitals include Taipei City Hospital’s Kumin Prevention and Control Center, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Hsinchu Mackay Memorial Hospital, Taichung Veterans General Hospital and Chung Shan Medical University Hospital.
Other partners are National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Chimei Medical Center, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital, Gangshan Hospital, Kaohsiung Municipal Min-Sheng Hospital, Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Taoyuan General Hospital.
CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said that syphilis testing typically costs between NT$800 and NT$3,000 out of pocket, and if the program proves effective, it might be expanded to more locations.
Separately, Taiwan recorded 245 new cases of scarlet fever last week, the highest weekly total so far this year, Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said.
The number of scarlet fever cases began rising in November last year before stabilizing in mid-May, he said, adding that most infections involved children between the ages of three and 12.
He urged parents to ensure that children with scarlet fever complete a full 10-day course of antibiotics, as this is essential to reduce the risk of developing rheumatic heart disease.
The M1 UK variant of Group A Streptococcus — the bacterium responsible for scarlet fever — accounts for 3 percent of all new cases in Taiwan, indicating a relatively low danger of it spreading, he said.
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