Introduction

From 2017 to 2022, syphilis cases have increased 166% across Canada illustrating the increasing need for prevention that includes better access to testing and timely treatment. Having a basic understanding of syphilis-related information can help inform personal sexual health decisions, lessen anxiety about potential harms, or play a role in educating others about syphilis. This blog series aims to be an information resource about the timelines (referred to as periods) of the syphilis infection.
This blog series will primarily define, describe, and visualize the INCUBATION PERIOD, WINDOW PERIOD, TESTING WINDOW, and TREATMENT PERIOD for syphilis. It will cover some important considerations about these periods to help the audience make or guide informed decisions around testing and treatment.
The topic of key periods for diagnosing and treating syphilis will be released in two separate blog posts:

Intended Audience:
- Healthcare professionals looking for a syphilis public education resource
- Community educators looking for a syphilis community education resource
- People who are sexually active with multiple partners who want to learn more about syphilis
- People in general who want to learn more about syphilis
Stay tuned for PART 1 of this series!
To learn some basics of syphilis:
BC Centre for Disease Control Health Info
BC Syphilis Action Plan Refresh, 2023-2025
Interesting reads related to syphilis:
Research Update: Rapid HIV and syphilis test now approved for clinical use
The BCCDC Position Statement on Doxycycline as Prophylaxis for Sexually Transmitted Infections
CATIE News – Study finds some people with HIV are at greater risk for STI’s
Questions? Get in touch:
Monte Strong, Research and Evaluation Assistant: monte [at] paninbc.ca