Syphilis is a sexually transmitting infection caused by Treonema pallidum, a gram negative, and anaerobic spirochete bacteria 1. Syphilis is thought to have been brought to Europe by Columbus and his sailors in the 1500’s 1. The disease is characterized by four different stages with varying symptoms depending on the stage that the disease is in1. Often syphilis is presented with another sexually transmitted infection such as chlamydia. Public education regarding safe sex is important for the prevention of this sexually transmitted infection.
T. pallidum is highly sensitive to oxygen and has a decreased ability to survive when not in human body temperature environments 1. The mode of transmission is through sexual contact or vertical transmission from the mother to the fetus. T. pallidum lacks the lipopolysaccharide which is the endotoxin normally present in gram negative bacteria1. The bacterium does produce many lipoproteins which are thought to prompt the inflammatory mediators through the recognition of toll-like receptors1. T. pallidum has a virulence factor of being highly motile due to its ability to propel itself forward by rotating on a longitudinal axis1. The spirochetes easily penetrate the skin or mucosal membranes and spread throughout the lymph nodes and then the blood circulation, affecting many parts in the body1.
The primary stage of the infection is characterized by a chancer that presents as an ulcer in the anogenital area with an incubation period of nine-ninety days2. A chancer is a painless ulceration that forms where the original spirochete enters the broken skin or mucous membranes3. The lesions can also present on the lips, tongue, tonsils and nipples2. During the incubation period the T. pallidum can ...
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...allergic to penicillin3. All individuals with a positive laboratory result for Syphilis and the sexual partners of those infected are treated3. Safe sex education, increasing public awareness and partner tracking of the infected individuals are being implemented to reduce the occurrence of Syphilis. A patient with syphilis should be taught to avoid sexual contact until they have finished their antibiotic therapy to prevent transmitting the infection to others 4. Patients should also be taught the importance of notifying all recent previous sexual partners so that they can be tested and be treated if necessary4. It may be embarrassing for infected individual, but the health care provider needs to stress the importance of disclosing the information to their sexual partners. All cases of syphilis cases need to be reported to the public health authorities4.
In 1932 the United States Public Health Services was responsible for monitoring, identifying, ways to treat sexually transmitted diseases in all US citizens. Public health service was sponsored by Rosenwald Fund; identified Macon County, Alabama had the highest rate of male population infected with the Syphilis. So the Tuskegee Institute was approached to study the effects of untreated syphilis on a black male population for duration of six to nine months and then follow-up with a treatment plan. The research was led by Dr. Taliafero Clark, six hundred Macon County men, 399 with syphilis and 201 who weren’t infected, were enrolled to be part of the study.
Prior to the beginning of the study, the doctors decided to withhold the official diagnosis from their patients. Instead, of telling the patients that they were infected with syphilis they chose to tell them they had bad blood. This was a decision made as a group, however, the provider’s individual reasoning was different. Miss Evers wanted to tell them
Most people in the U.S. learn STDs in their health class in high school. Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) that causes sores over private parts or all over the body in a later stage. Syphilis is caused by a bacteria called spirochete. The spirochete cannot survive outside the body. The only way to get the disease is by intimate contact, but catching it is rare. Having more than one partner could increase the chances to catch the disease. The spirochete enters in a break in your skin genitals area or mouth. Once in your body, about three weeks it becomes a sore or have multiple sores. The sore looks like a crater on the surface of the skin. In the first stage it can be treated easily with antibiotics or penicillin. The second stage the syphilis spreads to the rest of the body. It is visible in your hand and soles on your feet. It can cause cardio-vascular disease, mental problems, paralysis, blindness and tumors. Syphilis has links to HIV/AIDS. It also attacks your nervous system. After infection it takes 21 to develop any symptoms for other people it takes from 10 to ninety days. It acts like no other disease known. The last stage is the deadliest if ignored, by the person. The damage obtained by syphilis is irreversible. By practicing safe sex (condoms), or having one sex partner can prevent these
1. Wake County health officials are claiming that social networking apps are partly to blame for the sharp increase in syphilis cases around the area. According to the state Department of Health and Human Services, As of Friday, March 18th, there has been a recorded 1,113 early syphilis infections that were diagnosed in 2014, in the entire state as well as county, which is a 62 percent increase from the previous year, when 688 cases were reported. The article states that Wake County saw a total of 233 reported cases of syphilis last year, marking a 15-year high. A Wake County public health division director by the name of Sue Lynn said that when patients who contracted syphilis were interviewed in Wake County, many said they met their partner
Being a gram-negative bacterium, L. pneumophila has lipopolysaccharides (LPS) that act as endotoxin within a human host. The presence of a flagella is thought to mediate adherence to human lung cells, thereby causing infection, since flagella-less strains do not cause disease. Once attached to human cells, the organism is engulfed by a macrophage where is utilizes the internal environment to multiply.
Throughout the ages, while the origins to this day continue to be debated, the strength and potency of the disease have rarely been in question. Syphilis, while not viewed as a huge threat due to a decreased number of cases in the mid-late 1990s, needs to be taken more seriously by the public because it is more dangerous than many realize, especially because it is extremely contagious, it is extremely elegant in the symptoms it produces, it has played a larger part in history than many would think, and there is a certain stigma which surrounds the disease, which in turn pushes individuals away from receiving the necessary testing.
This parasite is spread through the bite of sandflies. There are three different types of infections and they each show varying degrees of severity. The cutaneous form produces mild skin ulcers, mucocutaneous produces ulcers in the mouth and nose, and the visceral form of the disease starts with skin ulcers and then fever, low red blood cell count, and an enlarged spleen and liver. The parasite is detected by a microscope and visceral can also be found by doing blood tests. 12 million people are in infected in 98 different countries and 2 million new cases are found every year. The disease also kills around 20 to 50 thousand people a year.
The disease was viewed as a black man’s disease due to its vast spread in the black race community. In this chapter, it is clear that the medical fraternity had formed opinion of the disease even before the start of the experiment. The theme of racial prejudice is brought out clearly in this chapter. The blacks are discriminated from the whites even after learning that syphilis can affect both races alike. The slaves received treatment like their masters just because of economic concerns and not because they were human like their masters. In chapter 3 “Disease Germs Are the Most Democratic Creatures in the World”, the writer points out that the germ theory changed the way syphilis is viewed in the society. It was clear that other emphasis such as sanitation, education and preventative medicine was necessary to combat the disease. The areas inhabited by the blacks were behind in healthcare facilities and service. In this chapter, the theme of unequal distribution of resources is seen. Whereas areas inhabited by the whites had better hospitals and qualified professionals to deal with the
There are two types of bacteria that cause Typhus, Rickettsia Typhi and Rickettsia Prowazekii. The form of Typhus depends on which type of bacteria has entered the body and caused the infection. Rickettsia Typhi causes Murine or Endemic Typhus. Endemic Typhus is unusual in the United States. When it is found, its usually seen in areas with poor hygiene and where the temperature is cold. Endemic typhus is sometimes called "jail fever." Murine Typhus typically occurs in the southeastern United States, often during the summer and fall. Risk factors for Murine Typhus include exposure to rat fleas or rat feces. Rickettsia Prowazekii causes both Epidemic Typhus and Brill-Zinsser disease. Brill-Zinsser disease is a far more mild form of Epidemic Typhus. It occurs when the disease re-activates in a person who was previously infected. It is more common in the elderly. Lice and fleas of flying squirrels spread the bacteria. There is no commercially available vaccine against either Endemic or Epidemic typhus.
The most common symptoms generally; are skin rashes, nodules, lesions, intense itching, visual impairment and blindness, along with weight loss,hanging groin and elephantiasis of the gentials in women(Opperdoes, 2002).Depending upon the strain the person is infected with, plays a key role in where nodules may appear on the body. As a matter of fact, there are two different types, the African and the Central American strains, differ in regards to location of the nodules on the body in high frequency. For example the African strain most often appear on the bony areas of the body: pelvic area, chest,spine, and knees. Whereas, the Central American strain nodules are seen above the waist, primarily on the head and neck. The number of nodules a person have may very from 1 -100, they cause no pain, but may cause body disfigurement (Sace, 2008). Severe itching, caused by the dead or dying microfilariae leads to scratching that cause bacterial infection. If the skin is left untreated the skin becomes loose, atrophy and discolored(WHO, 2015). In regard to the eyes, early symptoms of ocular onchocerciasis may be itchy eyes and redness (Nettleman, 2013) Baby worms can live inside the human host for 3 - 5 years and the adult can live for 2 - 15 years (CDC, 2013). According, to Little et al discovered that 5% of people living in affected areas have died from O.volvulus, due to microfilariae overload (Udall, 2007). On the positive side, 96% of once affected regions is no longer susceptible to the infection, due to education and administration of ivermectin(Hopkins, 2013). All in all, blindness is the probably the biggest complication of onchocerciasis (Sace,
It is imperative that sexually active people get tested because some STD’s if not can be life threating if gone untreated. To stop the spread of disease, it is important that sexual partners and health care professionals are informed of any diseases. Once diagnosed it is the responsibly of heath care providers to report each case to the local health department, who then must
STD's, or sexually transmitted diseases, are an increasingly serious issue for our young people. Studies show that by the age of twenty, 75 percent of Americans have lost their virginity (Langan p.671). The pressure to be sexually active outweighs the desire to be knowledgeable about the risks involved with multiple sex partners. Many sexually transmitted diseases are incurable and some are even life threatening. Contrary to popular belief sex is not the only way to contract a sexually transmitted disease. Mononucleosis for example, can be transmitted simply by kissing or even sharing a glass of water. Herpes can be transmitted by rubbing, kissing, or touching even if the infected partner currently shows no signs or symptoms of infection. It is important to educate our young men that though the pressure to have sex with as many women as possible is real, th...
Syphilis is a STD that causes problems if you don’t get it taken care of it can be very life threatening. Male’s having sexual relationships with another male is a big part of getting the disease because male to male interaction is not a man made thing that guys should do so that’s how they contract the disease. Over 595,000 males have contracted this disease in America.
Sexually Transmitted Diseases Sexually Transmitted Diseases STDs, a.k.a venereal diseases, infectious diseases passed from one person to another during sexual contact. STDs are the most common infections known. More than 12 million people in the United States, including 3 million teenagers, are infected with STDs every year. The United States has the highest STD rate in the world about one in ten Americans will contract an STD during his or her lifetime. People who do not know they are infected risk infecting their sexual partners and, in some cases, their unborn children. If left untreated, these diseases may cause pain or may destroy a woman's ability to have children. Some STDs can be cured with a single dose of antibiotics, but AIDS cannot be cured. Those most at risk for contracting STDs are people who have unprotected sex—without using a condom, people who have multiple partners, and people whose sex partners are drug users who share needles. Static’s show that Americans between the ages of 16 and 24 are most likely of catching STDs than older adults, because younger people usually have multiple sexual partners than an older person in a long-term relationship. Teenagers may be embarrassed to tell their sexual partners they are infected Teenagers may also be embarrassed or unable to seek medical attention for STDs. This means that they only more likely to pass the disease to other young people and have a greater risk of suffering the long-term consequences of untreated STDs. STDs are transmitted by infectious bacteria, viruses, parasites, fungi, and single-celled organisms called protozoa that live in warm, moist parts of the body, like the genital area, mouth, and throat. Most STDs are spread while having sex, but oral sex can also spread disease. Some STDs are passed from a mother to her child while pregnant, when the disease enters the baby's bloodstream, during childbirth as the baby passes through the birth canal, or after birth, when the baby drinks infected breast milk. AIDS can be transmitted by blood contact such as open wounds, between people who share infected needles or received through an injection of infected blood. Some people believe that STDs can be transmitted through shaking hands or other casual contact, or through contact with inanimate objects such as clothing or toilet seats, but they can’t. Chlamydeous, is from trachoma is bacterium, is the most commonly transmitted STD in the United States.
The sex lives of older people, is a stigma, long ignored by society. Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) amongst this community are growing at an increasing rate. Due to little research in their sexual encounters, it is hard to pinpoint just why the rates are so high. Rates of STDs such as Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, and Syphilis have double for people in their 50's, 60's and 70's in the past decade (Gann, 2012). Since Realization, some researchers believe it is partly due to biological changes; living longer, and the rise of options that help facilitate proactive sex. Examples of such are erectile dysfunction pills for men and hormone induced creams for women. However ignoring the statistics of this crisis will not make