Syphilis : (noun)
1: a common venereal disease caused by the Treponema pallidum
spirochete; symptoms change through progressive stages;
can be congenital (transmitted through the placenta)
[syn: syph, pox]
Based on WordNet 2.0
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Syphilis : \Syph"i*lis\, n. [NL., fr. Syphilus, the name of a
shepherd in the Latin poem of Fracastoro, ``Syphilus, sive
Morbus Gallicus,'' which was published in 1530; Gr. ? hog,
swine _ ? dear, loving. The term was introduced into nosology
by Sauvages.] (Med.)
The pox, or venereal disease; a chronic, specific, infectious
disease, usually communicated by sexual intercourse or by
hereditary transmission, and occurring in three stages known
as primary, secondary, and tertiary syphilis. See under
Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Syphilis : Syphilis: A sexually transmitted disease caused by Treponema pallidum, a microscopic organism called a spirochete. This worm-like, spiral-shaped organism infects people by burrowing into the
moist mucous membranes of the mouth or genitals. Based on there, the spirochete produces a non-painful ulcer known as a chancre. There are three stages of syphilis: - The first (primary)
stage: This involves the formation of the chancre. At this stage, syphilis is highly contagious. The primary stage can last one to five weeks. The disease can be transmitted from any contact with
one of the ulcers, which are teeming with spirochetes. If the ulcer is outside of the vagina or on the scrotum, the use of condoms may not help in preventing transmission. Likewise, if the ulcer is in
the mouth, merely kissing the infected individual can spread syphilis. Even without treatment, the early infection resolves on its own in most women.
- The second (secondary)
stage: However, 25 percent of cases will proceed to the secondary stage of syphilis, which lasts four to six weeks. This phase can include warts , but are caused by spirochetes rather than the
wart virus. These wart-like lesions, as well as the skin rash, are highly contagious. The rash can occur on the palms of the hands, and the infection can be transmitted by casual contact.
- The third (tertiary) stage: This final stage of the disease involves the brain and heart, and is usually no longer contagious. At this point, however, the infection can cause extensive
damage to the internal organs and the brain, and can lead to death.
Diagnosis is by blood test, either the rapid plasma reagin (RPR) or Venereal Disease Research Laboratory (VDRL) test. Treatment is with antibiotics.
Syphilis remains a major health problem. About 12 million new cases of syphilis occur every year. More than 90% of them are in developing nations where congenital syphilis remains a leading cause of
stillbirths and newborn deaths. In North America and Western Europe, syphilis is disproportionately common and rising among men who have sex with men and among persons who use cocaine or other illicit
drugs.
The name "syphilis" was coined by Hieronymus Fracastorius (Girolamo Fracastoro). Fracastorius was a true Renaissance man; he wrote on the temperature of wines, the rise of the Nile, poetry, the
mind, and the soul; he was an astronomer, geographer, botanist, mathematician, philosopher and, last but not least in the present context, a physician. In 1530 he published the poem "Syphilis sive
morbus gallicus" (Syphilis or the French Disease) in which the name of the disease first appeared. Perhaps more importantly, Fracastorius went on in 1546 to write "On Contagion" ("De contagione et
contagiosis morbis et curatione"), the first known discussion of the phenomenon of contagious infection: a landmark in the history of infectious disease.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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