[Congenital syphilis: incidence among newborns]

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of congenital syphilis among newborns at the maternity of a public hospital. METHODS: The study was conducted at the maternity of Fundação Santa Casa de Misericórdia do Pará, from May to September 1996; 361 mothers were interviewed, and physical examination was performed in their newborns. Serum samples from both, mothers and neonates, were tested using three methods: VDRL, FTA - Abs, ELISA IgM. The diagnosis of congenital syphilis was established according to the criteria defined by Ministério da Saúde in 1993. RESULTS: The rate of congenital syphilis was of 9.1% (33); in 14 cases, there were one or more signs of the disease: prematurity, hepatomegaly, stillbirth, splenomegaly, perinatal death, abdominal distention, nasal stuffiness, jaundice, newborn small for gestational age. The majority of the infected mothers belonged to the age group of 20-35 years (81.8%); 60.6% were married; 63.6% received prenatal care; 48.5% reported previous spontaneous abortion, and 12.1% previous stillbirth. The rate of bisexuality among fathers was of 9.1%. CONCLUSION: The syphilis control measures and the prenatal care, have not been sufficient to prevent the high rate of the disease.