What is syphilis?

Girolamo Fracastoro (3)

The History

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) that has been infecting people for many years and has had interesting cultural effects around the world. While evidence of the STI has been found in human bones at least 2000 years old in both the "old world" and "new world," it first took to the literary stage in 1530 when an Italian man named Girolamo Fracastoro wrote a poem entitled "Syphilis Sive Morbus Gallicus," which translated to English means "Syphilis or the French Disease."1,2 This poem is about a Shepherd named Syphilis who makes the Greek god, Apollo, angry and in return Apollo gives the man syphilis.2 The title is important to note as this man was Italian and referred to the infection as a French disease. Syphilis had many different nicknames and all were meant to insult as it was viewed as a cultural embarrassment. A few of the other nicknames were "the Neapolitan sickness," "the Castillian sickness," and "the Chinese ulcer."1 

The Bacteria

(4)

Syphilis is caused by the bacteria Treponema pallidum. This bacteria is a spirochete, which means it has a spiral shape and is flexible. T. pallidum is a very fragile bacteria and does not do well when exposed outside of the human body. It is easily destroyed when it comes in contact with heat, if it becomes dry, or if it is washed.5

The Infection

T. pallidum enters the body through breaks in the skin or mucous membranes, and the most common delivery of the bacteria is through the mucous membranes of the genitalia as sexual intercourse causes minor abrasions through which the bacteria can enter. This is why it has earned itself the nickname of Cupid's Disease.5

Syphilis is broken up into four stages. I will be going into greater depth of each stage later so for now I will give a quick explanation. The primary phase usually occurs a couple weeks after transmission and appears in the form of a chancre, which is not very pretty to look at, but it painless. There is also usually lymphadenopathy in the genital area. The secondary phase is systemic and comes a few weeks after the appearance of the chancre. The person will usually have flu-like symptoms. The latent phase is next and can last several years. This is when the person has no symptoms and eventually will no longer by infectious. The final phase is late, or tertiary, syphilis and is characterized by the presence of a gumma. This is a chronic lesion that can affect any organ and, depending on where it is, can have serious consequences for the person.5

References:
1: Rothschild, B. (2005). History Of Syphilis. Clinical Infectious Diseases, 40(10), 1454-1463. doi: 10.1086/429626


2: Intagliata, C. (2011, May 27). Science Diction: The Origin Of The Word "Syphilis" Retrieved April 5, 2015, from http://www.sciencefriday.com/segment/05/27/2011/science-diction-the-origin-of-the-word-syphilis.html

3: Banque d'images et de portraits. (n.d.). Retrieved April 5, 2015, from http://www2.biusante.parisdescartes.fr/img/?refbiogr=6399&mod=s

4: SPIROCHETES, Syphilis Lecture Notes. (2011, April 27). Retrieved April 5, 2015, from http://www.nursing-help.com/2011/04/spirochetes-syphilis-lecture-notes.html

5: Lewis, S., Dirksen, S., Heitkemper, M., & Bucher, L. (2014). Sexually Transmitted Infections. In Medical-Surgical Nursing: Assessment and Management of Clinical Problems (9th ed., pp. 1264-1265). St. Louis, Missouri: El Sevier.