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Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete Treponema pallidum. It can affect nearly any part of the body, including the genitals, skin, heart, bones and nervous system. Since the discovery of penicillin in the 1940s, the incidence of syphilis has declined tremendously. However, syphilis continues to occur in... more »
Syphilis, a sexually transmitted bacterial infection, can cause a variety of symptoms depending on the stage of the disease. The condition has three symptomatic stages--primary, secondary and tertiary. Some people also experience a symptom-free period, called the latent stage. Of the three symptomatic stages, secondary syphilis is... more »
Syphilis is a disease that can be transmitted sexually or maternally. There are four profound stages of syphilis. Forty percent of all syphilis patients will not be properly cured because they waited too long. Reading this article will teach you how syphilis is treated. more »
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted bacterial infection caused by the spirochete Treponema pallidum. The disease has three phases--primary, secondary and tertiary. Each stage has very different symptoms, and some people experience a latent phase without symptoms between the secondary and tertiary phases. This latent phase may last for... more »
Syphilis, at one time considered to be man's punishment for sexual promiscuity, is a highly contagious disease usually transmitted through sexual activity. It is caused by a bacterium called treponema pallidum. Syphilis has three stages. The most common form is secondary syphilis. more »
Though not all Sexually Transmitted Diseases are curable, they are at least avoidable. The more...
Choosing a contraceptive method is one of the most important aspects of sexual activity....
Syphilis is an infection brought about by bacteria and transmitted in most cases through sexual contact. It is a condition that can manifest... more »
Syphilis is a bacterial STD that can be cured if caught in its early stages of development. An intramuscular shot of penicillin is the most common... more »
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease that can linger in the body for many years if not treated. Recognizing syphilis symptoms in each of its... more »
Anyone who is having unprotected sex, sex with multiple partners or sex with strangers is at risk for contracting syphilis. Although the number of... more »
Symptoms of syphilis may not appear, despite infection. They may go away without treatment and are sometimes confused with those of other... more »
Syphilis is easily curable in its primary stages with early diagnosis, prompt treatment and close monitoring. Once late complications develop,... more »
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Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the spirochetal bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The route of transmission of syphilis is almost always through sexual contact, although there are examples of congenital syphilis via transmission from mother to child in utero.
The signs and symptoms of syphilis are numerous; before the advent of serological testing, precise diagnosis was very difficult. In fact, the disease was dubbed the "Great Imitator" because it was often confused with other diseases, particularly in its tertiary stage.
Syphilis can generally be treated with antibiotics, including penicillin. If left untreated, syphilis can damage the heart, aorta, brain, eyes, and bones. In some cases these effects can be fatal. In 1998, the complete genetic sequence of T. pallidum was published, which may aid understanding of the pathogenesis of syphilis.
Alternative names
The name "syphilis" was coined by the Italian physician and poet Girolamo Fracastoro in his epic noted poem, written in Latin, titled Syphilis sive morbus gallicus (Latin for "Syphilis or The French Disease") in 1530. The protagonist of the poem is a shepherd named Syphilus (perhaps a variant spelling of Sipylus, a character in Ovids Metamorphoses). Syphilus is presented as the first man to contract the disease, sent by the god Apollo as punishment for the defiance that Syphilus and his followers had shown him. From this character Fracastoro derived a new name for the disease, which he also used in his medical text De Contagionibus ("On Contagious Diseases").
Until that time, as Fracastoro notes, syphilis had been called the "French disease" in Italy and Germany, and the "Italian disease" in France read more at » http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syphilis
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