Syphilis

Syphilis is a very serious STD but it can be cured if treatment is given on time. The bacteria that gives this illness attaches itself to the mucus membranes of the mouth, anus, vagina and penis. After this, the bacteria can spread itself through the whole body via the blood steam.

Symptoms that may be experienced by men and women

Between two and twelve weeks after getting sexual contact with someone that has Syphilis, you can start to get wounds on the place where the bacteria entered your body. This can be in or on top of the penis, vagina, anus or mouth. The wound can be roughly 1 centimeter in length and if you touch it, it will feel hard and give no pain. Even if you don't get treated, the wound will go away by itself within two or three weeks.

Sometimes the wound is hard to see because it is hidden very deep inside of the vagina or anus. Even if it goes away, that does not mean that the illness has been cured. A couple of weeks after the wound goes away, the so-called "second stage" of the illness will kick in. The bacteria will then have spread through the entire body.

You may experience the following symptoms :
  • Little spots on the body, especially in the palm of the hands or under the feet.
  • Just like the wounds, these spots are not always noticeable and may go away by themselves, but this does not mean that the illness is gone.
  • Flu-like symptoms. Headache, sore throat, fatigue and fever.
  • Hair loss.
  • Certain types of warts around the sexual organs or anus.

Treatment

Treatment consists of a couple of penicillin injections. After the last injection, the patient has to go back to the doctor to get his or her blood checked out. The check up after the Syphilis treatment is the most important one. If you have gotten all of the injections, you won't be able to infect someone else anymore and you will be able to have sexual relations again.

Possible consequences for men and women

If a patient does not get proper treatment during the first two stages, he or she will enter the third stage where the bacteria is still in the body without the patient knowing anything. Only a blood test will detect the virus then.

Years after the infection, it can still affect many parts of the body including the brain, the spine, the heart and the bones.