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Syphilis Infection
Syphilis Infection
Q: Question, A: Answer
Q. What is syphilis?
A. Syphilis also known as ‘Pox, Syph, and Lues’ is one of the sexually transmitted infections
that can cause serious health problems when left untreated for a longtime. It is caused by a
A. When uninfected person comes into direct contact with the lesions of an infected person.
Anal, vaginal, and oral sex are the primary modes of transmission of the pathogen that cause
syphilis infection. Pregnant mothers can also transmit the infection to their unborn babies,
leading to miss carriage, stillbirth, and/or congenital syphilis infection. Another means of
A. Everyone who is sexually active is at risk of getting syphilis through vaginal, oral or anal sex.
Pregnant mothers, people with other sexually transmitted infections like Human
A. Usually two to three weeks after contact with lesions, but this can take about three months or
90 days.
Pretender” because most of the clinical presentations (sign and symptoms) resemble other
As the infections progresses, from weeks to months to years, certain defining symptoms appear
usually according to the stage of the disease (primary, secondary, and tertiary syphilis)
Primary stage:
The presence of single or multiple chancre (sores). The sores are usually firm, round, and
painless. With adequate treatment, these sores disappear. In the absence of treatment, the
Secondary stage:
Rashes or lesions (or both) on the mucous membranes of the mouth, vagina, and the anus.
Headache,
Muscle Aches.
Presence of sores in the mouth, vagina, or anus. weight or hair loss may also occur. These may
take about two (2) to six (6) weeks, but may last up to two years.
Tertiary stage:
This is usually rare because treatment would have cleared the infection. In case of untreated
syphilis, many organs (liver, kidneys, brain, skin, muscles, etc.) may become infected.
way to prevent or avoid contracting most sexually transmissible infections including Syphilis.
Another way is to have faith and trust in your sexual partner. You should both test for Sexually
Alcohol and drug abuse are behaviors that are directly linked with certain STI. Avoid misusing
Use of condoms as a barrier when you have not tested your partner is another way of stopping
A. Yes. There are medical or drug treatment for syphilis infection. However, you will need to
test and be confirmed to have syphilis by visiting your healthcare provider. When you test
positive, your provider will determine the stage of infection and provide you with the most
appropriate mode of treatment. The duration of treatment also depends on the stage of disease.
Long-acting benzathine penicillin G) is administered in the gluteus muscle at a single dose of 2.4
million units. This treatment is preferred for nonpregnant adult patients having primary,
Alternatively, when you are allergic for Penicillin, your doctor may prescribe:
Doxycycline - 100 mg PO bid for 28 days for latent syphilis (not used in pregnant
mothers)
Ceftriaxone 1 g – Intravenously (IV) or Intramuscularly (IM) daily for 10 days (for the
Mortality rates from untreated syphilis is more in males than females and about 8% will die from
the disease. Other complications include: stroke, dementia, heart diseases, bone diseases, etc.
Is there any vaccine against syphilis?
As of to date, there is no none vaccine for syphilis infection. However, syphilis can be cured
completely when the right drugs are given for its treatment. With time, vaccines may become
Question
Have you been diagnosed with syphilis? If yes, which drug or drug combination were used for
your treatment?
Reference:
CDC. (2017, June 8). Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from Center for
WHO. (2016, 4). Word Health Organisation. Retrieved 2020, from Word Health Organisation:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK384905/