Australia's sexual health data for 2025 reveal a decade-long accumulation of preventable harm — tens of thousands of syphilis and gonorrhea diagnoses, forty infant deaths from congenital syphilis, and infection rates among First Nations peoples that are multiples of the national average. The Kirby Institute's findings are less a surprise than a reckoning, documenting what happens when effective tools exist but are not distributed equitably. Yet within the same data lies a quiet proof of concept: targeted prevention among gay and bisexual men has begun to bend the curve, suggesting that the gap
Australia's STI crisis deepens with syphilis surging among women, First Nations hit hardest
Congenital syphilis cases pose severe risks to infants, with 40 deaths among 113 cases over the past decade; 43% of 2025 congenital cases occurred in First Nations infants.