Desert AIDS Project launches syphilis education campaign

Desert AIDS Project has launched a new syphilis education and prevention campaign in the Coachella Valley encouraging gay men to get tested for syphilis, the non-profit group announced this afternoon.

Syphilis surge prompts new campaign

An increase in syphilis in Australian gay men, particularly in inner Sydney, has prompted ACON to launch a new campaign urging gay men to get tested for the potentially fatal STI.

Approximately 750 diagnoses were made in Australia in the year to March, 2009, with actual numbers thought to be considerably higher and infection rates rising.

The data has led ACON to develop a new campaign to encourage gay men to get tested for the disease, and to notify their partners if they have been infected.