The citizens of Milwaukee have been shocked to learn of a sexually transmitted infection outbreak that has been revealing itself to public health officials since December 2017. News of the crisis broke when it was announced on Wednesday, March 7, that a so-called "cluster" of 125 people in the city contracted HIV and Syphilis over a 12-month period in 2017.
An investigation born out of an alarming rise in the number of people diagnosed with one/the other/or both of the illnesses found that three of the victims (each of whom tested positive for syphilis) were infants. However the majority of those who learned they were sick range between the ages of 15 and 24, with a good percentage of them being students in the Milwaukee Public Schools system. As much as 45 percent (or approx. 60 people) of those alluded to with the announcement contracted HIV.
The group is being called a 'cluster' because they are believed to make up a network of personally affiliated and unaffiliated people who directly and in some cases indirectly spread the STIs among one another. The number of those infected is expected to grow, as officials have noted that they suspect there are a number of people who have not come out to be tested out of fear of stigma. They also believe it to be the case that some of those infected have refused to out some of their sexual partners.
Source: dailymail.co.uk