While the rapid test for HIV is not new, a rapid test for syphilis is just emerging in Canada and could help diagnose the condition with groundbreaking speed in areas like the NWT experiencing an outbreak. The region will be one of the first places in Canada to implement such a test outside of Alberta. Advertising. Alberta infectious disease specialist Dr. Ameeta Singh and clinical study coordinator Noel Ives have been in Yellowknife since Monday to help train health professionals. They showed the trials at the Yellowknife Ski Club on Tuesday. The tests will soon be available in NWT healthcare facilities. The distribution will focus on areas deemed most in need and at risk, which the local government said included Dehcho, Hay River and Yellowknife. While traditional tests require a doctor to order a blood test and can take weeks to produce results, the new tests require a single pinprick of blood and can provide results in less than 15 minutes. “It’s transformative in my practice,” Ives said during the demonstration, in which he gave Dr. Singh a quick test. Dr. Ameeta Singh and Noel Ives demonstrate a rapid test in Yellowknife. Laurissa Cebryk/Cabin Radio The rapid tests manufactured by BioLytical Laboratories — one of two that have been part of a clinical trial in Alberta over the past 19 months — have not yet been approved for unrestricted use by Health Canada. Advertising. However, NWT received special access approval for 1,100 tests. According to Director of Public Health Dr. Kami Kandola, these tests have been ordered and should be received in the coming weeks. He said the district plans to order more as tests are used. “Our plan right now is to make sure we move this forward with the voice of the community in mind,” Stephanie Gilbert, health specialist, said Tuesday. “There will be planning sessions with community stakeholders from different areas and we will try to implement a development for each area and community based on their individual needs.” The NWT plans to monitor the results to see how the rapid tests affect the outbreak.

Alberta Clinical Trial

During the 19-month clinical trial, which examined 1,500 participants in Edmonton and northern Alberta, the tests were found to be more than 90 percent accurate. The speed of results means patients can start treatment at the same appointment, whereas previously, Singh said, about 20 percent of those tested would not return for results and would be difficult to trace. Thanks to the rapid tests, Singh said, about nine out of 10 newly identified infectious cases were treated at the same time the test was delivered. This will be the goal in the NWT. “We know for sure that not everyone will want to be treated right away,” Singh said. “They may want to wait for our standard test results. But we’re really hoping that we can either meet or exceed the 90% that we treat at the point of care visit.”

Syphilis in the NWT

From early 2019 to April 2022, the NWT reports a 253 percent increase in syphilis cases – in other words, the region says cases more than tripled. Two cases involved congenital syphilis, where a mother passed the disease to a newborn during pregnancy. According to a 2021 statement from the GNWT, the majority of cases were seen in Yellowknife.
From 2021: The syphilis epidemic is two years old. Something has changed; Dr Kandola declared an outbreak of syphilis in the territory in August 2019. However, the Covid-19 pandemic affected the number of health care workers were able to carry out. A poster from a 2019 GNWT syphilis awareness campaign. In the past four years, Kandola noted, cases of infectious syphilis in the NWT among women are reported to have increased more than 1,100 percent. He said such high rates among women of reproductive age are a major concern. “If a baby is born with congenital syphilis, it’s a life of pain and suffering,” he said. “And it’s preventable because syphilis is uniquely susceptible to the long-acting penicillin therapy we have available. “So that’s my highest priority.” According to Singh, if a woman contracts syphilis in the last four weeks of pregnancy, the infant is almost guaranteed to be infected. By offering rapid syphilis testing in the NWT, the hope is to create a targeted campaign for the groups most at risk. Rapid testing should also speed up contact tracing and slow transmission, ultimately avoiding the neurological and other symptoms that can occur if the disease is left untreated. Syphilis is spread through unprotected sex, and not everyone who is infected will develop symptoms. “We want everyone who is sexually active in the NWT to take preventative measures, such as using a condom correctly and getting tested frequently,” Kandola said in a press release. “When syphilis is detected and treated early, it can prevent further transmission.” Advertising.