Through June 2016, one Miami-Dade clinic has reported a dramatic spike in new cases among its adolescent patients.Syphilis is curable with penicillin, but left untreated it can cause serious long term damage and, because it involves open sores, can leave you more susceptible to HIV.
“We have seen more cases in the first six months of this year as opposed to the last two years,” said Alex Moreno, clinical manager for the University of Miami Health System’s Promote to Protect program, which operates a testing site and a primary care clinic that focus on HIV-positive teens and young adults.
He said the program’s clinic logged 13 syphilis cases in 2015, and 12 so far this year.
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