Syphilis

Syphilis is a highly contagious disease spread primarily by sexual activity, including oral and anal sex. Occasionally, the disease can be passed to another person through close bodily contact with an infected person. Although this disease is spread from sores, the vast majority of these sores go unrecognised. The infected person is often unaware of the disease and unknowingly passes it on to their sexual partner.

Pregnant women with the disease can spread it to their baby. This disease, called congenital syphilis, can cause abnormalities or even death of the child.

Syphilis cannot be spread by toilet seats, door knobs, swimming pools, hot tubs, bath tubs, shared clothing or eating utensils.

What causes syphilis?

Syphilis is caused by the bacteria Treponema pallidum.

How common is syphilis?

This sexually transmitted disease was once a major public health threat, commonly causing serious long-term health problems such as arthritis, brain damage and blindness. It defied effective treatment until the late 1940s, when the antibiotic penicillin was first developed.

In England diagnoses of syphilis have increased substantially since 1997. The Health Protection Agency says this increase has been driven in part by outbreaks in cities like Manchester and London.There were 2,685 reported cases of syphilis in the UK during 2009.

How do I know if I have syphilis?

Syphilis infection occurs in 3 distinct stages:

Early or primary syphilis. People with primary syphilis will develop one or more chancre sores. The sores resemble large round bug bites and are often hard and painless. They occur on the genitals or in or around the mouth somewhere between 10-90 days (average 3 weeks) after exposure. Even without treatment they heal without a scar within 6 weeks.

The secondary stage may last 1-3 months and begins within 6 weeks to 6 months after exposure. People with secondary syphilis experience a rosy ’copper penny’ rash typically on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. They may also experience moist warts in the groin, white patches on the inside of the mouth, swollen lymph glands, fever and weight loss. Like primary syphilis, secondary syphilis will resolve without treatment.

Latent syphilis. This is where the infection lies dormant (inactive) without causing symptoms.

Tertiary syphilis. If the infection isn't treated, it may then progress to a stage characterised by severe problems with the heart, brain and nerves that can result in paralysis, blindness, dementia, deafness, impotence and even death if it's not treated.

How is syphilis diagnosed?

Syphilis can be easily diagnosed with a quick and inexpensive blood test performed at your doctor's surgery or at a sexual health clinic.

If you have a chancre, your doctor will take a swab or scraping of the sore. It will then be sent to a lab to analyse under a microscope for the characteristic bacteria.