Ah, Syphilis. The OG STD. Yes, that is what I said, syphilis! In this week’s blog I will be talking about the STD syphilis including the epidemiology of it and the history behind it—because it goes back a longggg way. Syphilis was super prevalent back in the day, like the 14oos, and it stayed relevant for so long and when penicillin was discovered it was able to be treated. Only recently, has syphilis started to increase more significantly in the number of cases. Keep reading to know more about why and how you can prevent it!
According to the New England Journal of Medicine, in 2018 almost 86% of the cases of syphilis were in men. A huge factor that plays into this huge percentage and the rise of syphilis as a whole, is men having sex with men. The number of cases of syphilis have also been increasing among women who are heterosexual in the last 4 years. This is in part due to the disease being spread through injected drugs or these women having sex with partners who have gotten syphilis through non-sterile injection of drugs. The symptoms of syphilis are different in the different stages of the disease and whether it is treated or not. First, there will be an ulcer at the site of contact usually on the genitals. There will then usually be a fever and body rash which will appear on the soles of the feet and palms of the hand especially. If left untreated, syphilis can go into the CNS and cause serious infection and consequences such as meningitis and seizures. After many years of infection without treatment, syphilis can severely affect the cardiovascular system and cause many problems with heart function.
As you can see so far, syphilis is no joke and can seriously cause damage to your organs if you don’t treat it, so please get tested for STDs people…it may not be “just a normal rash” yikes! So now that you know that syphilis is super bad and that you definitely do not want it, how do you prevent it? Well, syphilis is caused by the bacteria Treponema pallidum. When someone is infected with this bacteria and then has sexual contact with another human this is a perfect way to give them the infection too, which is NOT good. The South Australian Government’s Health website recommends firstly, that anyone who has syphilis not have sexual relations with anyone for AT LEAST one week after they end treatment and once wounds are healed completely. Make sure that once you are treated you keep getting blood tests to make sure it is fully gone and everyone should get tested regularly for STDs too!
So after reading this blog–do you feel the burn? if you answered yes, drop everything and go get tested please!!!!!!!!! It is very important to practice safe sex and keep these preventative methods in mind. You don’t want to have STDs like syphilis and your partner for sure does not want to be given them either. Especially with the rise in the number of syphilis cases and the effects it can have on you, it is better to be safe than sorry! Use protection, get tested, and do not have sex if you have an STD! Alright, now that you have heard my lecture, here are the memes!! see you next week!
Microbiology 