SYPHILIS
- What is syphilis?
-
- Syphilis is a serious bacterial infection which may be transmitted by an infected person
during intimate, usually sexual, contact.
- Syphilis has been on the rise in many cities in association with the AIDS epidemic.
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- How is syphilis transmitted?
-
- Syphilis is caused by the spread of bacteria from the sores of an infected person to the
mucous membranes of the genital area,
- the mouth, or the anus of a sexual partner. The bacteria also can pass through broken
skin on other parts of the body. Once the
- bacteria enters the body through these moist mucous membranes, it travels through the
bloodstream and can infect vital organs.
-
- What are the signs and symptoms of syphilis?
-
- It usually takes between 10-90 days with an average of 21 days for primary symptoms to
develop. The symptoms of syphilis
- vary according to the stage of the disease.
-
- Primary stage:
- Ten to ninety days after infection, a chancre (sore) develops at the site of infection.
This sore is usually painless, smooth, and
- red and lasts one to five weeks. A chancre usually heals whether or not a person gets
treatment. However, if a person is not
- treated, syphilis infection persists. Virtually everyone who is not treated for primary
syphilis will develop secondary syphilis.
- This is considered the most infectious stage.
-
- Secondary stage:
- From six to twelve weeks after the initial infection, discolored spots or patches on the
palms of the hands and the soles of the
- feet, moist raised or elevated skin lesions, mucous patches in mouth, throat, and
cervix, rash over body, patchy loss of hair, and
- flu like symptoms appear. These spots will clear up with or without treatment. If
untreated the disease is still present and will
- then go into a latent stage (no signs or symptoms). During the secondary stage the
disease can be cured without any complications.
-
- Latent stage:
- There are no symptoms even though the infected person has not been treated. This period
may last a few years to a lifetime.
-
- Tertiary stage:
- One in three people who have latent syphilis develop the third stage of syphilis. This
third stage starts 10-40 years after the
- primary stage. Tissue and liver damage occur which may cause severe heart disease, brain
damage, paralysis, and death.
-
- How is syphilis diagnosed?
-
- There are three ways to diagnose syphilis: recognition of its signs and symptoms,
examination of a specimen from a moist lesion
- under a microscope, and a blood test to detect antibodies to the bacteria.
-
- How is syphilis treated?
-
- Syphilis is usually treated with injections or oral doses of penicillin over a long
period of time. Since treatment fails in
- approximately 2 to 20 percent of persons treated with penicillin for early syphilis,
follow-up evaluation is required. Retreatment
- should be considered when signs and symptoms of syphilis persist or recur or when tests
indicate infection. All patients
- diagnosed with syphilis are urged to avoid sexual intercourse, even with a latex condom,
until treatment is completed and their
- partner(s) have been checked by a health care provider. Partners should be notified and
treated if necessary.