Last year saw Māori women top the statistics for New Zealand women diagnosed with syphilis.
Midwife Tamara Karu says the number of cases of Māori women being diagnosed with syphilis has gone from bad to worse.
"For some it’s okay, but for others baby suffers. If mum has syphilis for the duration of her pregnancy, baby suffers," Ms Karu told TVNZ1's Te Karere.
"The real price is miscarriage, still birth."
Sexual health practitioner and executive director of NZAF Jason Myers says although the statistics are alarming for Māori women, men who have sex with men are most impacted.
"I don’t think that we can shy away from the fact that we are in the middle of a syphilis epidemic.
"Our rates have been rising for a number of years now and alarmingly it’s still men who have sex with men who are most impacted."
In 2012 just over 50 people were diagnosed with syphilis compared to 2017 where nearly 500 people were diagnosed with the disease.
Sexual health coordinator Ricky Te Akau says condoms are still the most effective defence tool against syphilis.
"We’re trying to create more of an access to free condoms as you’d know. Māori have a slow up take with some of the health matters, so we try and break down those barriers and provide access to condoms as free and readily as possible."
The New Zealand AIDS Foundation also say the best way to defend the spread is to test or to see a doctor.
"The best thing is to test for all STIs (sexually transmitted infections), HIV as well as syphilis at least twice a year, every three months if possible.
"For those in regional areas we have home tests as well."
These sentiments are being endorsed by midwives as well.
"The issue is that there aren’t always symptoms, unseen therefore unknown and untreated.
Te Karere approached the Health Minister David Clark and Associate Minister Julie Anne Genter for comment but neither would comment.
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