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HOUSTON VOICE www.houston voice.com
APRIL 11, 2003
local news
Health leaders warn of threat to gays
Syphilis on the rise
particularly among gay men,
while staph outbreak seen
in general population as well
By PENNY WEAVER
Health officios are urging awareness of a
sexually transmitted disease that appears
among more gay men than the general population, while downplaying the increase of another potential health risk to gay Houstonians.
New statistics from the Houston Department
of Health and Human Services show that infectious syphilis cases in 2002 in Houston and
Harris County rose 7.5 percent overall and nearly doubled among gay and bisexual men, including those who don't identify as such, according
to a health department press release.
This is a particular concern for men who
have sex with men (MSM), health officials note,
because early symptoms of syphilis, which can
be cured with antibiotics, are genital sores,
which also can help transmit HIV The rise in
reported cases also causes concern that it signals a rise in HIV because gay and bisexual
men are increasingly practicing unsafe sex.
Officials urge men engaging in anonymous unprotected sex to get immediate testing for syphilis.
"Anonymous sexual encounters hamper
intervention efforts," said John Paffel, STD
Prevention Program manager with the department's Bureau of HTV/STD Prevention. "Without
the ability to notify anonymous partners, we are
unable to provide testing and treatment to sexual
contacts of people with the disease."
New infectious cases of syphilis — known
as primary, secondary and early latent, or hidden — rose last year to 245 from 228 in 2001.
The total number of syphilis cases, including
people who have progressed to the late latent
stage of the disease, reached 969 in 2002 in
this area. Some 899 cases were reported in
2001, according to the health department.
.Among gay and bisexual men, the number of
new infectious syphilis cases in 2002 increased
to 116, nearly double the 59 reported in 2001. The
total number of syphilis cases among MSMs
was 227 last year, up from 107 in 2001.
The local increase mirrors that of other
major U.S. cities. Last fall, federal health officials reported that a rise in syphilis cases
among gay and bisexual men in a few large
Houstonian Tony Dodd is prepared for a blood test
by a Houston health department worker during testing hours at All Star News bookstore. A recent rise
in cases of syphilis among gay men sparked owners
of the bookstore to offer the location for free testing
each Thursday. (Photo by Dalton DeHart)
cities that surfaced last year had spread into
urban and rural areas nationwide.
The trend sparked prevention efforts
aimed at sexually active gay men, despite a
focus by the Centers for Disease Control &
Prevention on abstinence as the main defense
against sexually transmitted diseases, according to Ron Valdiserri, deputy director of the
CDC's Program for HIV, STD & TB Prevention.
"The overall syphilis rate in the United
States rose by 2 percent between 2000 and
2001," Valdiserri said. "The syphilis rate
among men in the United States rose by 15
percent [in the same time period]."
Houston health officials urge medical
providers, particularly those with many gay
and bisexual men as clients, to conduct risk
assessments, increase testing and provide
prompt treatment.
Syphilis is easily treatable with antibiotics,
health leaders note. Without adequate treatment, however, the disease progresses to the
secondary stage when one or more areas of the
skin break into a rash, usually non-itchy and
typically on the palms and soles. Other second-
stage symptoms include fever, swollen lymph
glands, sore throat, patchy hair loss, headaches,
weight loss, muscle aches and fatigue.
According to the health department, syphilis
often goes undetected because the signs and
symptoms are misinterpreted or unnoticed.
Houston staph infection
outbreak under scrutiny
In late February, Houston health offi-
.cials reported an outbreak among
Houstonians of a skin infection that began
surfacing late last year among gay men in
San Francisco and Los Angeles.
At the time, Mark Sanders, director of
clinic services for Houston's Montrose Clinic,
which treats a number of gay men, said it was
too early to tell if the increase in incidences of
the infection was primarily among gay men.
The skin condition is known as Methicillin-
Resistent Staphylococcus Aureus, or MRSA,
and also has been reported on the rise among
gay men in Washington, D.C, and Atlanta.
Wayne Bockman, MD. a Montrose Clinic
physician, said the rise in MRSA does not
appear to be unique to gay men.
"We are seeing it. We've got several cases.
Whether it's particular in gay men or not, it's
too early to say," Bockman said. "What I
think is happening is we're seeing MRSA in
the general community. It's everybody's problem, not just gay folks."
Bockman said the STD portion of the clinic
has about 50 percent gay clients, and not all new
incidences of staph infections are among gays.
"Of the 10 cases I've got, I think three are
in heterosexuals," he said.
Bockman noted that other doctors, whose
clients are primarily heterosexual, also have
treated more cases of MRSA lately
"They tell me they're seeing the same thing
in their patient population," he said. "It's here
but I don't think it's just in the gay community"
Sanders said MRSA is treatable, even though
it is more resistant to some antibiotics.
"We're still seeing [more staph infections].
Some of these are getting bad." he said. "We've
got some good treatment protocols in place.
"It's heightening our awareness,"
Sanders added.
According to Kathy Barton, chief of public
affairs for the Houston health department,
health officials still are unsure how widespread
the staph infection outbreak may be.
"We don't know how big the problem is."
Barton said. "It's actually difficult to diagnose in many cases."
An epidemiologist with the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention said the
cases appear to confirm earlier findings by
CDC researchers that a new, undetermined
factor is causing MRSA to flourish in a wider
group of people, including gay men. Until the
late 1990s, the pesky skin infection had been
confined mostly to elderly patients in hospitals and nursing homes, CDC officials said.
Health officials said MRSA can be contracted easily through casual contact.
"It's a relatively easy-to-pass infection,"
Sanders said. "It can be spread sexually, but
it can be spread in many ways."
A
MORE INFO
Free HIV and STD testing
Montrose Clinic Inc.
215 Westheimer -713-830-3000
www.montroseclinic.org
ECH0S • 9610 S. Gessner
Call for dates and times of services.
713-270-0369
E-mail: echos-houston(n>swbell.net
Houston Health Department • HIV/STD
Information Hotline • 713-794-9020
Fridays • 10 p.m.-2 am. at The Meatrack ,710 West 25'n St.
10 p.m.-l am. at EJ's and Midtowne Spa
Testing done by Montrose Clinic workers
Thomas Street Clinic • 9 a.m.-l p.m.
2015 Thomas St. OraSure method.
Cal lor appointment • Sharon. 713W34157
Saturdays • 11 p.m.-2 a.m. at Viviana's
Testing done by Montrose Clinic wortcers
Sundays
9 p.m.-midnight at Club Inergy
Testing done hy Montrose Clinic workers
Mondays
Houston Area Community Services
9 am.-noon • Jpseph-Hines Clinic
;thct
713-526-0555, ext. 231,227 or 226 Testing done by Montrose Clinic workers
8 p.m.-midnight at Keys West
Testing done by Montrose Clinic worters
Tuesdays
Houston Area Community Services
10 a.m.-2 p.m. • Joseph-Hines Clinic
8 p.m.-midnight at Club Houston
4-8 p.m. at 611 Club
Testing done by Montrose Clinic workers
Wednesdays
4-8 p.m. at Mary's
9 p.m.-midnight at Ripcord
10 p.m.-l a.m. at EJ's
10 p.m.-l a.m. at Midtowne Spa
Thomas Street Clinic • 9 a.m.-l p.m.
Cal for aopcimtmeiit • Sharon 713-873-4157
Thursdays • 7-9 pm. • All Star News
3415 Katy Freeway • 713-869-7878
Houston Area Community Services
10 im.-2 pm. • Joseph-Hines Clinic
11 am-330 pm. • Gallery Medical Clinic
5900 North Freeway
and Club Toyz from 9 pm.-midnight.
4-8 p.m. at The Outpost
8 pm- mid at Brazos River Bottom, Cousins
10 p.m.-l am at Toyz Disco
Testing done by Montrose Clinic workers
inside
ISSUE 1172
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.26
AROUND TEXAS: El Paso gay activists praised
that city's mayor, Raymond Cabailero, after city
officials added sexual orientation and gender
identity to the Municipal Code on discrimination.
Page 6.
CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTOR: Gay Marine
reservist Stephen Funk seeks conscientious
objector status, saying his sexual orientation
influenced his morals and opposition to the U.S.
war in Irag. Page 10
EDITORIAL Writer Miles Christian Daniels
chronicles personal and ideological changes
between the 1991 Gulf War and the current
conflict in Iraq. Page 12.
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