Guangzhou's syphilis rate 1.5 times higher than average

The syphilis infection rate in Guangdong province is 1.5 times higher than the national level, Guangzhou Daily reported on Thursday.

According to data from the Guangdong provincial syphilis monitoring system, 51 out of 100,000 Guangdong residents were found to be infected with syphilis in passive monitoring in 2012, 1.5 times more than the national average.

Yang Bin, director of the Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Dermatology, analyzed that sexually transmitted diseases including syphilis have increased highly in Guangdong because of a greater mobility of people, as it has long been a fast-developing province.

Experts said most people infected with syphilis can be cured in the early period, and anyone who has engaged in risky sexual behavior even once should be tested for syphilis, as the disease may be asymptomatic in its early period and its incubation period is very long.