Epidemiological situation of new cases of congenital syphilis in Chile, 2010-2022.

UNLABELLED: Congenital syphilis is the transplacental transmission of the Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The incidence of syphilis has increased worldwide and in Chile.

OBJECTIVE

To describe the characteristics of new cases of congenital syphilis in Chile between 2010 and 2022.

SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Descriptive design, review of the database of notifiable diseases. Variables included sex, region, clinical stage, co-infection with other STIs, and year, among others. Statistical analyses were performed using Stata v.18.

RESULTS

The incidence has shown an upward trend since 2018, with 2021 having the highest number of reports. 63% of cases were reported in three regions: the Metropolitan Region, Valparaíso, and Biobío. Of the total cases, 63% were classified as early congenital (n = 288), and among these, 31% presented with symptoms.

CONCLUSION

Congenital syphilis is on the rise in Chile.