Syphilis

Syphilis (historically called lues) is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) that is caused by a spirochaete bacterium, Treponema pallidum. Syphilis has many alternate names, such as: Miss Siff, the Pox, and has been given many national attributions, e.g. the French disease or the English disease.

Testing and treatment

Originally, there were no effective treatments for syphilis. The most common in use were guaiacum and mercury: the use of mercury gave rise to the saying "A night in the arms of Venus leads to a lifetime on Mercury".

Related Topics:
Guaiacum - Mercury

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It was only in the 20th century that effective tests and treatments for syphilis were developed.

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In 1906, the first effective test for syphilis, the Wassermann test, was developed. Although it had some false positive results, it was a major advance in the prevention of syphilis. By allowing testing before the acute symptoms of the disease had developed, this test allowed the prevention of the transmission of syphilis to others, even though it did not provide a cure for those infected.

Related Topics:
1906 - Wassermann test

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In the 1930s the Hinton test, developed by William Augustus Hinton, and based on flocculation, was shown to have fewer false positive reactions than the Wasserman.

Related Topics:
1930s - William Augustus Hinton - Flocculation

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Subsequent syphilis tests, such as the Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) and Venereal Disease Research Laboratory (VDRL) test, and others based on monoclonal antibodies and immunofluorescence, are used in place of the Wassermann and Hinton tests today.

Related Topics:
Monoclonal antibodies - Immunofluorescence

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As the disease became better understood, effective treatments began to be found, beginning with the use of the arsenic-containing drug Salvarsan from 1910, and later, Neosalvarsan. One treatment that was tried was the use of malaria; the intense fever produced by a malarial attack raising the body temperature sufficiently to kill off the spirochaetes. Though this did leave the patient with a malaria infection, it was considered to be preferable to the long term effects of syphilis.

Related Topics:
Arsenic - Salvarsan - 1910 - Neosalvarsan - Malaria

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These treatments were finally rendered obsolete by the discovery of penicillin, and its widespread manufacture after World War II allowed syphilis to be effectively cured for the first time.

Related Topics:
Penicillin - Manufacture - World War II

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In one of the best documented, but most controversial, episodes of the twentieth century, the Tuskegee syphilis study continued to study the lifetime course of syphilis in a group of black Americans, long after effective treatments for syphilis were available.

Related Topics:
Tuskegee syphilis study - Black American

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In the July 17, 1998 issue of the journal Science, a group of biologists reported the sequencing of the genome of T. pallidum.

Related Topics:
July 17 - 1998 - Science - Genome

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To this day, the primary treatment for syphilis remains penicillin. Treatment typically consists of benzathine penicillin G or aqueous procaine penicillin G for several days to weeks. Individuals who have allergic reactions to penicillin (i.e., anaphylaxis) can be effectively treated with oral tetracyclines.

Related Topics:
Penicillin - Anaphylaxis - Tetracycline

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