According to Avert, in 2008 46,277 cases of syphilis (all stages) were reported in the United States.
If you don’t know your STD status, it’s not only your own health you are putting at risk, but also the health of your partner.
A bacteria called Treponema Pallidum, which sort of resembles a worm, is responsible for spreading this highly infectious STD. Many people call syphilis “the great imitator,” since many of the symptoms are very similar to other common disease or infections. As the infection changes from one stage to the next, the symptoms also change or may even disappear completely for intervals of time. Since it is difficult to recognize syphilis, it’s important to get tested if you are a sexually active man or woman.
The first cases of syphilis appeared in the 15th century in Europe. While the infection was very difficult to treat back then, today it can be treated with antibiotics.
Syphilis sores appear along the genitals, lips, mouth and anus and can be spread to a partner through direct contact with any of these areas. A syphilis infection will go through four stages if left untreated.
Primary Stage: This is the first stage of a syphilis infection and it usually begins with an outbreak of one or more sores (chancres). This initial outbreak usually begins to appear anywhere from 10 – 90 days after the person first comes in contact with the bacteria. The sores are often hard to see since there is usually no accompanying pain, just a tiny, circular spot. Usually the first outbreak or singular chancre marks the place where the bacteria entered into the body. Sometimes groin muscle swelling will accompany the sores but this isn’t usually painful. Within four to six weeks, these sores tend to heal even without treatment. Many go undiagnosed because they believe whatever it was simply disappeared and while it may appear this way, the infection continues to progress.
Secondary Stage: This stage is usually the one first noticed as a problem by the person who is infected. The symptoms in the primary stage are pretty well hidden, the secondary stage symptoms however, are much more noticeable. When the primary stage sores begin healing, it is common for multiple areas of the body to break out into a non-itchy rash. This typically happens between 2 and 10 weeks after the initial outbreak. The soles of the feet and palms of the hands are the most common areas for the rash. It is easily recognized by brownish red spots in these areas but sometimes the rash will be less noticeable in other areas of the body. Sometimes people mistake this rash for a topical ailment and do not release it is in fact a tell tale sign of syphilis. In addition, people suffering from secondary stage syphilis may also experience loss of hair, swollen glands, achy muscles and sore throat. Once these symptoms show up, they may disappear and reappear several times in the future. In most cases, these symptoms simply go away on their own. Without treatment however, the infection continues into the next stage.
Latent Stage: As soon as the secondary symptoms end, the latent stage of syphilis begins. As the name implies, these symptoms are normally hidden. One of the most shocking things about this phase is that this stage can begin 2 years or 30 years after the initial infection began. In the early part of this stage, the symptoms are usually not noticeable but you can spread the infection to you partner. Without treatment, the infection becomes far more serious.
Tertiary Stage: In this final stage, serious complications can result, but they do not affect everyone. Syphilis can result in severe health problems in about 15 percent of all cases that are not caught early and treated. Most of the time this happens anywhere from 10-20 years after initial infection. Some of these health problems may include numbness, internal organ damage, dementia, paralyzes and possibly death.
Outlook for treatment: If the infection is caught in the first year, it is fairly simple to cure with an IM shot of penicillin. The further stages the infection is allowed to progress, the more aggressively it must be treated. It’s rare for internal organ damage to occur as long as the infection is diagnosed and treated promptly.
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