After being virtually eliminated more than a decade ago, a new federal study revealed Thursday that syphilis is back on the rise, especially among gay and bisexual men.

Health officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said syphilis, a potentially deadly bacterial disease that surfaces as genital sores, has reached its highest level since 1995 with the increase all in men. Since 2005, the rate in men has nearly doubled, however it is much lower in women.

In 2013, there were nearly 17,000 cases. Of those cases, more than 90 percent were among men, who mostly were gay or bisexual, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study reported.

"Men contributed an increasing proportion of cases, accounting for 91.1 percent of all primary and secondary syphilis cases in 2013," Dr. Monica Patton and colleagues reported in the CDC's weekly report.

"After being on the verge of elimination in 2000 in the United States, syphilis cases have rebounded," the report states.

"During 2005-2013, the number of primary and secondary syphilis cases reported each year in the United States nearly doubled, from 8,724 to 16,663; the annual rate increased from 2.9 to 5.3 cases per 100,000 population," Patton's team wrote.

Researchers said that the increase in the sexually transmitted venereal disease syphilis is a major public health concern because it indicates sexual behavior that could lead to an increase in the HIV rate.

According to experts, secrecy and a lack of follow ups are factors helping the disease to spread, NBC News reported.

"Disclosure of sexual practices remains difficult for some men who have sex with men; therefore, providers are encouraged to elicit sexual histories of their patients in a culturally appropriate manner, including recognition of sexual orientation, gender identity, and the sex of patients' sex partners."

The CDC team found that he syphilis rate among black men was 5.2 times higher than the rate in white men. Plus, although the rates among women are much lower, the disease was reported in black women 13 times more than white women.