What if I have a question that isn’t answered here?
If you have a question about syphilis that is not answered here please try any of the following:
What is syphilis? Is it curable?
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) caused by the bacterium Treponema Pallidum. Syphilis can cause serious damage to your heart or brain if not treated promptly.
Yes, Syphilis CAN be cured! Because Syphilis is caused by bacteria, antibiotics (e.g. penicillin) rid the body of the infection.
What are the symptoms of syphilis? What does it look like?
There are three stages of syphilis, each with its own symptoms. The first stage starts 3-12 weeks after you are infected. The first symptom is an open sore called a chancre (pronounced SHANK-er). The chancre is typically brownish-red and painless and usually appears on your genitals, in your mouth or inside your rectum or vagina. Although this sore goes away on its own after 1-5 weeks, a person who had a chancre still has syphilis.
The second stage begins about 2-7 months after getting syphilis. Symptoms during this stage can include rashes (on the body, hands, or feet), mucous patches, patchy hair loss (alopecia), and clusters of hard, white warts which appear on the genitals. Like the chancre, these symptoms go away; however, the person still has syphilis.
The third stage of syphilis, which can begin years after the time of the initial infection, may involve the loss of eyesight and hearing as well as heart disease and brain damage. Also, people who are HIV-positive sometimes progress to the third stage more quickly than those who do not have HIV.
Sometimes people do not notice or recognize these symptoms. Think about it, if you had a syphilis chancre in your throat, that didn’t hurt, how would you know? Some folks ignore the symptoms, thinking they are “nothing really” or that they are something else, like an allergic reaction. Or maybe, perhaps, that sore on their penis is from an unfortunate “zipper accident.” (Think about it guys, wouldn’t you know FOR SURE if your penis had recently been in a fight with your zipper?) Finally, because visible symptoms eventually go away, it’s easy to think “whatever it was, it’s not a problem now….” These common misconceptions, and the fact that syphilis can become very serious (deadly) in its later stages, make it very important for sexually active people to get tested for syphilis on a routine basis.
Click here to see pictures of these symptoms. They’re rather vivid and graphic!
I think I have a symptom of syphilis. What should I do?
If you believe you have symptoms of syphilis, STOP having sex and get tested as soon as possible. Click here to get more info on testing or treatment sites, or contact your medical provider.
Please note: if you infect someone else with syphilis and you have sex with them again after you have been treated, your chances of getting re-infected with syphilis dramatically increase if they have not been properly treated as well. So, if you think you have syphilis, for your own sake and the sake of others, please get tested. And get treated if necessary. It’s easy!
How do people get syphilis? Will condoms protect me from getting syphilis?
You get syphilis from skin-to-skin contact with an open sore called a “chancre.” Syphilis, unlike HIV, is NOT passed by exposure to bodily fluids such as blood, semen, vaginal fluids, or breast milk. See the answer to question 2 to read more about symptoms of syphilis, or click here to see graphic pictures of symptoms.
While it is possible to get syphilis just from rubbing genitals together or kissing if a sore is present on the genitals, on the lips, or on the tongue, you are much less likely to get syphilis from these activities than if you have unprotected oral, anal, or vaginal sex.
Condoms only work where you use them, and work best when they are used properly. If you do not use a condom for oral sex, you are at risk for contracting syphilis. Also, remember that if the sore is not covered by the condom your partner is wearing, or if the bare skin beyond the condom you are wearing touches the sore, you can get syphilis even though you are using condoms.
If you are sexually active, you can help protect yourself from syphilis by:
- using condoms!
- checking your sex partners for signs of syphilis, such as sores and rashes!
- asking them if they have/had syphilis!
- making regular testing for syphilis part of your routine
Click here for a list of testing sites.
What is a syphilis test like?
A syphilis test requires a simple blood draw, like a traditional HIV test. Sometimes people prefer to get both an HIV test and a syphilis test at the same time because of this.
If the result is positive, the test gives a ratio that relates to the amount of antibodies in your blood.
If you are symptomatic, it is very important to be treated immediately because you are most infectious while symptomatic. If you test positive but are not showing any symptoms, it is still very important to get treated.
Where can I get tested? Click here for a list of testing sites.
Should I get a test? How often should I test?
If you have symptoms of syphilis, you are encouraged to be tested and treated as soon as possible.
If you are sexually active, make syphilis testing part of your routine. We encourage you to get tested for syphilis every six months. Some folks may want to consider more frequent testing. For instance, a number of medical providers urge sexually active individuals with HIV to get tested for syphilis every three months. Why? Syphilis makes it easier to get or give HIV, 3 to 5 times easier in fact. And syphilis can advance very rapidly in HIV-positive people. These dangers can be avoided with regular testing and, if necessary, treatment. Please talk with a medical provider for more specific recommendations.
How is syphilis treated? Where can I get treatment?
Syphilis is normally treated with one dose of benzathine penicillin. For those who are HIV-positive, the recommended treatment is three doses. If you are allergic to penicillin, the treatment is an oral antibiotic called Doxycycline. Your medical provider can provide treatment. Many clinics that test for syphilis also provide treatment.
I have/had syphilis. Should my partners be tested or treated?
If you recently had syphilis or have syphilis right now, all or your sex partners (i.e. anyone with whom you had oral, anal or vaginal sex, with or without condoms) from the last three months should be tested for syphilis and treated, even if their test comes back negative. This is because the incubation period for syphilis is three months. In other words, you can have a negative result on your syphilis test for up to three months, but still have syphilis in your body.
Any sex partners you have had prior to three months ago should be tested only. They do not need to be treated unless their test comes back positive. For more information on the treatment of sex partners please contact an educator at Howard Brown Health Center via e-mail at DanielP@howardbrown.org or MarkP@howardbrown.org.
If you have syphilis, it’s incredibly important that you tell your partner(s). Just thinking about it probably makes you cringe. Your feelings of discomfort are very understandable; however, if you don’t tell your partner(s), you might end up dealing with even more serious consequences. Untreated partners could potentially develop life-threatening health problems. They could also infect someone else or even re-infect you. Syphilis isn’t like chicken pox – you can get syphilis again.
Keep in mind that no one intentionally gives another person syphilis. A person with syphilis often has no obvious symptoms or has symptoms (i.e. mouth ulcer, hair loss, rashes) that they can easily mistake for a more harmless condition.
Click here for tips on how to tell someone you may have exposed to syphilis.
Is there a link between syphilis and HIV? What about other STDs?
There IS a very important link between syphilis, as well as other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and HIV. Studies have repeatedly demonstrated that people are more likely to become infected with HIV when other STDs are present. This is because some STDs, like syphilis, cause lesions or sores that can serve as a way for HIV to enter a person’s body. Other common STDs, like gonorrhea or chlamydia, can irritate sensitive membranes in the penis, vagina, or anus. This irritation can make it easier for a person to become infected with HIV if they have unprotected sex with a person who is HIV positive.
There is an additional link between HIV and syphilis. If a person is HIV positive, or if the immune system is weakened for any reason, syphilis (and other STDs) may progress faster and do more damage to the body.
For these reasons, it is important for all sexually active people to test on a regular basis for STDs like syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia. These three infections are completely curable.
Click hear for a list of testing sites.
I thought syphilis was, like, so last century. What’s with all the fuss?
Syphilis infections in the United States tend to move in cycles. At some times, there are large numbers of infections, and at other times, there are very few. Right now in many major cities in the U.S., there are an increasing number of syphilis infections in men who have sex with men. Although Chicago has seen its numbers dropping, there are still enough cases reported to take note, and be sure to understand that syphilis is NOT ONLY occurring in men who have sex with men. Chicago is seeing heterosexual cases as well. Whatever your sexuality, it’s important to make syphilis testing part of your routine if you are sexually active.
The City of Chicago’s goal to eradicate syphilis from all of our communities resulted in the formation of a special community-based coalition called the Syphilis Elimination Task Force. This hands-on working group is specifically dedicated to eliminating syphilis in Chicago through community outreach activities and social marketing, among a number of initiatives. Individuals and organizations of all types, kinds, shapes and sizes, from a wide range of backgrounds and from every corner of the city, are working together to make Chicago a healthier place to live.
If you would like to get involved, click here.
