Signs and symptoms
The signs and symptoms of syphilis occur in stages. These include:
Primary
These signs may occur from 10 days to 6 weeks after exposure:
-
Painless sores
(lesions) on your genitals, rectum, tongue or lips
-
Enlarged lymph
nodes in your groin
Signs and symptoms of primary syphilis may disappear without treatment,
but the underlying disease remains and will reappear in the secondary or
tertiary stage.
Secondary
The
signs and symptoms of secondary syphilis may begin 2 to 8 weeks after
the first stage:
-
Rash over any area
of your body, including the palms and soles
-
Fever
-
Fatigue and a
vague feeling of discomfort
-
Soreness and
aching in your bones or joints
Following the secondary stage is an intermediate period called latent
syphilis.
Tertiary
Without treatment, the syphilis bacteria may spread, leading years later
to infection affecting various organs in your body.
Some of the signs and symptoms of tertiary syphilis include:
-
Neurologic
problems.
These may include stroke, infection and inflammation of the
membranes and fluid surrounding your brain and spinal cord
(meningitis), personality changes, psychiatric illness, and spinal
damage with resulting abnormal gait and sensation.
-
Cardiovascular
problems.
These may include bulging (aneurysm) and inflammation of the aorta,
your body's major artery, and of other blood vessels.
Causes
The bacterial organism that causes syphilis, Treponema pallidum,
enters your body through minor cuts or abrasions in your skin or mucous
membranes during sexual activity. Other routes of syphilis transmission
are by transfusion of infected blood, by direct unprotected close
contact with an active lesion (such as during kissing), and from a
mother to her unborn child during pregnancy.
Treponema pallidum
is extremely sensitive to light, air and changes in temperature. It can
live only within the human body. The disease is difficult to transmit
except by intimate contact.
Screening and diagnosis
If you have painless sores in your genital area and enlarged lymph nodes
in your groin area, see your doctor. These may be signs of syphilis. The
sooner you see your doctor, the sooner you can have the condition
treated and prevent its spread and progression. Left untreated, the
disease can result in more serious health problems.
In the primary stage of syphilis, the appearance of painless sores and
swollen lymph nodes in the groin area is a clue to the diagnosis. Your
doctor also may scrape a small sample of cells from a sore to be
analyzed by microscope in the laboratory. Blood tests can confirm the
presence of antibodies to the organism that causes syphilis. These tests
remain positive indefinitely unless you receive effective treatment.
During latent syphilis, when no symptoms are evident, your doctor can
use blood tests to diagnose the infection.
Complications
If you're pregnant, it's possible for you to pass syphilis to your
unborn child. Blood containing the bacterial infection reaches the fetus
through the placenta. About half of women who are pregnant and who have
syphilis pass the disease along to their children. Sometimes, an unborn
baby infected with syphilis may die or be stillborn. If your baby is
born infected with syphilis, signs of the disease may be evident at
birth or may develop when your baby is between 2 weeks and 3 months old.
Treatment
Early diagnosis and treatment with penicillin or a similar antibiotic
can kill the organism that causes syphilis and stop the progression of
the disease. Left untreated, the disease can lead to serious
complications or death.
If transmitted to a fetus, syphilis can cause deformity and death. Even
if you were treated for syphilis during your pregnancy, your newborn
child should receive antibiotic treatment.
To make sure you're responding to the usual dosage of penicillin, your
doctor likely will want you to have periodic blood tests. While you're
being treated, avoid sexual contact until the treatment is completed and
until at least two blood tests indicate that the infection has been
eliminated.
Prevention
To reduce your risk of syphilis and other sexually transmitted diseases,
practice safer sex:
-
Avoid sex or limit
sexual relations to a single, uninfected partner.
-
Use a latex condom
with each sexual contact.
-
Avoid excessive
use of alcohol or other drugs, which can cloud judgment and lead to
unsafe sexual practices.
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