LOS ANGELES—The Associated Press is reporting that Dr. Jonathan Fielding, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, has identified four new cases of syphilis among adult performers in addition to the five that have already been reported to the county.
"Four more cases of syphilis have been found in an investigation of an outbreak among porn performers, bringing the total to nine, and the discovery of more cases is likely," the AP reported Fielding as saying. He added, "It's not surprising in the adult film industry that we would have transmission of all sexually transmitted diseases because they're having unprotected sex, oftentimes with multiple actors."
The four new cases were identified after partners of the original cases were tested, and all, according to Fielding, work in the adult entertainment industry, though he could not determine if they had contracted the disease on or off the set.
The AP also quoted Fielding as saying that even though the number of syphilis cases among adult performers seems small compared with the 819 cases reported throughout the county last year, "I doubt that the rate of sexually transmitted disease is higher anywhere else."
He added that the health department has begun warning "providers that work frequently with porn performers, which are largely located in the San Fernando Valley," to be on the lookout for signs of syphilis.
The article also states, "A single shot of penicillin can cure a person who has had syphilis for less than a year, according to the CDC. Additional doses are necessary for people who have had the STD for a longer period."
