Sexually transmitted disease rates for U.S. adults fell last year, but syphilis in newborns continued to rise, according to new government data recently.
About Syphilis:
It is a preventable and curable bacterial sexually transmitted infection (STI) that can cause serious health problems if you do not treat it.
It is caused by the bacteria, Treponema pallidum.
After the infection happens, syphilis bacteria can stay in the body for many years without causing symptoms. But the infection can become active again.
Transmission:
People usually get syphilis from sexual contact with someone who has it.
People get it if any part of their body touches the sore or rash of someone with syphilis.
It can also pass from mother to baby during pregnancy, childbirth, and sometimes through breastfeeding.
Symptoms:
Syphilis develops in stages.
The disease starts as a sore that’s often painless and typically appears on the genitals, rectum, or mouth.
Sometimes it causes swelling in nearby lymph nodes.
If you do not treat it, syphilis usually causes a non-itchy skin rash, often on your hands and feet.
Many people do not notice symptoms for years.Symptoms can go away and come back.
Without treatment, syphilis can damage the heart, brain, or other organs. It can become life-threatening.
Syphilis in pregnancy, when not treated, treated late, or treated with the incorrect antibiotic, results in 50−80% of cases with adverse birth outcomes.
Treatment:
It is easy to cure with antibiotics, especially during the early stages.
Penicillin is the most commonly used medication for syphilis.
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