SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS

This statement summarizes the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendations on screening for syphilis and the supporting sci-entifi c evidence, and updates the 1996 recommendations contained in the Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, second edition: periodic updates.1 In 1996, the USPSTF had recommended routine screening for syphilis infec-tion for all pregnant women and for persons at increased risk for infection (an “A ” recommendation). Since then, the USPSTF criteria to rate the strength of the evidence have changed. Therefore, the recommendation statement that follows has been updated and revised based on the current USPSTF methodology and rating of the strength of the evidence.2 Expla-nations of the ratings and of the strength of overall evidence are given in Appendix A and in Appendix B, respectively. The complete information on which this statement is based, including evidence tables and references, is available in the brief updates3 on this topic on the USPSTF Web sit