Number of babies in Mississippi born with syphilis grew tenfold since 2016

A number of factors contribute to heightened rates of syphilis, which can be transmitted to a fetus from the mother

The number of babies born with syphilis in Mississippi has increased more than tenfold since 2016, amid US-wide growth in cases of the potentially fatal but entirely preventable disease.

Rates of congenital syphilis, which occurs when a mother transmits the infection to the fetus, have more than doubled over the past five years, with the largest spikes in southern and western states, according to data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.