CDC Report on Findings from the U.S. Public Health Service Sexually Transmitted Disease Inoculation Study of 1946-1948, Based on Review of Archived Papers of John Cutler, MD, at the University of Pittsburgh, 29 September 2010

Background

The Guatemala syphilis experiments were United States-led human experiments conducted in Guatemala from 1946 to 1948. The experiments were led by physician John Charles Cutler who also participated in the late stages of the Tuskegee syphilis experiment. Doctors infected soldiers, prostitutes, prisoners and mental patients with syphilis and other sexually transmitted diseases, without the informed consent of the subjects. The experiment resulted in at least 83 deaths. Serology studies continued through 1953 involving the same vulnerable populations in addition to children from state-run schools, an orphanage, and rural towns, though the intentional infection of patients ended with the original study. On October 1, 2010, the U.S. President, Secretary of State and Secretary of Health and Human Services formally apologized to Guatemala for the ethical violations that took place. Guatemala condemned the experiment as a crime against humanity, and a lawsuit has since been filed.

Document Archive

CDC Report on Findings from the U.S. Public Health Service Sexually Transmitted Disease Inoculation Study of 1946-1948, Based on Review of Archived Papers of John Cutler, MD, at the University of Pittsburgh, 29 September 2010 [27 Pages, 0.8MB]

 

 

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