In the early 1980s, a sexually transmitted disease called HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) was discovered and later it was found to be the main reason behind AIDS (Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). Since the late 1980s as HIV AIDS emerged as a threat to public health sexually transmitted diseases became a widely discussed subject. During this time, when people started getting concerned over sexual health, many awareness campaigns were launched around “safe and protected sex”.
However, over the years sexually transmitted diseases have remained a matter of concern for health experts. Syphilis is one such infection, which also increases the risk of HIV AIDS among certain groups like commercial sex workers and individuals with multiple partners, among others.
Symptoms of Syphilis infection
Syphilis is a common type of sexually transmitted infection whose symptoms vary from person to person. The most common symptom is an ulcer or boils on the affected area, which is caused by treponema pallidum bacteria. The size of boils ranges from the size of a pimple to a centimetre wide.
In women, it usually occurs in the vagina or the labia, and in men, it appears on the penis. It can also appear around the anus or other parts of the body. Apart from this, some early symptoms of syphilis infection are often ignored as many infected people fail to realise what it is and assume it will go away on its own.
Syphilis infection is mainly caused by sexual intercourse with an infected person. If not treated early, skin rash starts developing all over the body because of the spread of pathogens via blood. The infected person starts getting skin lesions throughout the body, where some are raised, some are a bit scaly, and others are reddish.
At an advanced stage, the condition worsens as it starts affecting the internal organs, stomach, liver, airways, muscles and bones. The situation gets critical when on the main artery a “syphilitic node” is formed that can lead to an aortic aneurysm, which is deadly.
Chronic Diseases
Contrary common perception, syphilis infection can lead to chronic diseases. As a systemic disease, it causes heart inflammation, liver function changes, brain damage and signs of paralysis in its fourth phase. The disease causes brain inflammation and affects the eyes in many cases.
In fact, in old times, Syphilis was nicknamed “the great pretender” as it mimics many other diseases.
Treatment
When syphilis infection started, it used to be treated with an arsenic compound, salvarsan in 1910. In 1943, penicillin was created, and it became the drug of choice, just like it is now. Benzathine penicillin G injection is used for the treatment of the disease and different doses are recommended by the doctors depending on the severity and stage of Syphilis. However, experts believe that if the pathogen builds up resistance to penicillin, then it will take immense efforts to deal with the disease.
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