The number of babies born with syphilis is at a 20-year high, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Virginia Bowen, PhD. CDC says, "We haven't seen congenital syphilis numbers like this since 1997."

The number of babies born with syphilis has more than doubled since 2013. Reported cases jumped from 362 in 2013 to 918 in 2017. Cases of congenital syphilis occurred in 37 states, mostly in the South and West.

Eight out of 10 pregnant women who have untreated syphilis will pass it onto their babies. Congenital syphilis occurs when a child is born to a mother with syphilis. Babies exposed in utero can have deformities, delays in development, or seizures along with many other problems such as rash, fever, an enlarged liver and spleen, anemia, and jaundice. Syphilis can cause miscarriage, stillbirth or death.

The researchers note that the surge in cases parallels similar increases in syphilis among women of reproductive age, and outpaces national increases in sexually transmitted infections overall.

The disease can be cured with antibiotics, but pregnant women with untreated syphilis face a significant risk of passing the infection to their newborn.

The CDC currently recommends that every pregnant woman get screened early in pregnancy but now say that may not be enough. Women who live in high risk areas should be tested again in their third trimester. Georgia is considered at high risk state.