WHEELING - Syphilis has been confirmed in a 17-year-old female student and a 19-year-old man, bringing Ohio County's outbreak total to 10 cases since January.
The Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department announced in September that an outbreak of the sexually transmitted disease was occurring. Zero to two cases is considered normal in the county. On Sept. 4, it was announced six cases had been confirmed. Two other cases had occurred earlier in the year.
Administrator Howard Gamble said Tuesday the new patients - like those diagnosed in past cases - tested negative for other STDs, including AIDS/HIV. However, the fact that a minor has contracted the disease concerns the health department staff, he noted.
Article Photos
To fight the spread of venereal disease, the Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department offers 30 free condoms to any office visitor who asks for a “brown bag.”
Gamble said parents should talk to their children and ask if they have had unprotected sex. If they have, they should be tested. The health department offers free, confidential STD testing, including syphilis testing. Anyone of any age can make an appointment by calling 304-234-3682.
The 17-year-old girl's diagnosis has taken the health department's investigation into the public school system. Each new case's partners must be interviewed. To keep their status confidential, Gamble said investigators will not go to a child's home.
"It's up to the minor to tell their parent," Gamble noted.
Investigators first try to contact the child through their school nurse.
"Most of the time we get a cell phone number and talk to them in privacy," said Michael Makowski, regional epidemiologist. "We ask if they're in a safe, secure place."
Those at risk for contracting syphilis can include: people who have had unprotected, casual sex or those with a partner who has engaged in similar activity; people who have had unprotected sex and believe they may have been exposed; and people who believe they have symptoms of the disease, which can include sores in the genital region.
Makowski noted the best way to prevent getting an STD is to not have sex. But those who do not abstain should "be protected and be smart," he said.
The health department, located on the first floor of the City-County Building, 1500 Chapline St., offers free condoms to anyone who asks for them. People can simply ask for a "brown bag" at the department's front desk. Each bag contains 30 condoms and directions on how to put one on properly.
In 2007, West Virginia had 23 total cases of syphilis.
Health Officer Dr. William Mercer has said in his 10 years at the Ohio County Health Department, he previously had seen only one case of syphilis.
The disease is spread through sexual contact with sores, which are called chancre ulcers and typically are painless. It is treated with penicillin or other medicines if one is allergic to penicillin. The disease also can be spread via oral sex.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, syphilis, caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum, can also infect a woman's unborn child. If it is left untreated, a person can experience organ damage in later stages of the disease. The disease can incubate from 10-90 days after a person has come into contact with it.