The disease is transmitted by having sex with an infected partner. It is easier to get syphilis if a condom is not used.
How It Is Transmitted:
Syphilis is transmitted by passing germs (bacteria) from one person to another when having sex. Other potential routes of transmission include contaminated ~blood~ (shared needles) and mother to baby transmission.
What It Looks Like - What The Symptoms Are:
Patients with untreated syphilis are classified in a series of stages. The primary stage begins immediately after exposure. The first symptom usually occurs 1 to 12 weeks after ~infection~ and is defined by the presence of a chancre. The sore usually develops at the site of initial lesion contact. This could be on the external genitals but may develop inside the |vagina|, |rectum|, |mouth|, or throat and may go unnoticed. The sore will go away on its own but the disease ~process~ continues.
Secondary syphilis usually occurs 4 to 10 weeks after the chancre appears. At this time a number of obvious clinical signs become apparent. A skin rash develops and may cover a few areas or the entire body. Flu-like symptoms also frequently occur at or about the same time. Again, these symptoms will disappear but the disease remains. Many people now move to a latent period where no symptoms are apparent. This is followed by tertiary syphilis which can end in death.
How You Get Tested For It:
A healthcare provider will take a sample of skin or fluid from the genital area to determine if there is early stage (primary or secondary) disease. To test for disease further along, a ~blood~ test will be required. It usually takes a few days for the results to return.
Treatments:
Syphilis is treatable and curable, most easily in the early stages by penicillin shots.
If Left Untreated:
Untreated syphilis can lead to |blindness|, |heart| disease, |brain| damage, and death.
Prevention:
The regular use of condoms reduces the transmission of syphilis.
