"Double Yang, Titer 1:32."
After learning the results of the examination, Xiao Liu suddenly froze, his feet were numb, and he did not return to his senses for a long time... If it weren't for the rash on his body, he might never know what "titer" meant.
Xiao Liu is 28 years old this year, with a superior family, graduated from a famous school, and worked in a famous enterprise, just when the spring breeze was triumphant. Last week, he found that there were suddenly many erythema and rashes on his body, which were not painful or itchy, and were more obvious after exercise. At first, he thought it was just an allergy and went to the pharmacy to buy loratadine to take, but it never got better.
A few days later, Xiao Liu went to the dermatology department of the hospital to register and wanted to ask what the situation was.
After the initial examination, the doctor asked Xiao Liu whether he had recently had sex. Xiao Liu listened to his heart clatter, and an ominous premonition surged into his heart. Seeing that Xiao Liu did not answer for a long time, the doctor had a number in mind and issued a checklist for Xiao Liu to do a syphilis test.
Soon the results came out: double yang, titer 1:32.
The doctor told Xiao Liu that this means that you are infected with syphilis. Xiao Liu was stunned in the same place, regretting that he was not in the beginning, hating himself for not being too indulgent.
It turned out that he had found a small card in his hotel room on a business trip. He thought that he had been single for more than twenty years, so he couldn't resist the temptation and called the above.
"I only had one time, thinking I wouldn't be so unlucky, but I didn't expect..." Xiao Liu said regretfully to the doctor.
At the end of the 15th century, syphilis quickly swept across Europe and became the "terminal disease" of the time, devouring the lives of thousands of people. In 1906, scientists discovered that the "initiator" of syphilis was treponema pallidum. Four years later, the first syphilis drug appeared, which gave the syphilis epidemic a turnaround.
In 1928, penicillin was born, and mankind achieved a stage victory in the struggle against syphilis.
Syphilis is a chronic sexually transmitted disease caused by treponema pallidum. After being infected with syphilis, multiple organs and systems such as the brain, heart, blood vessels, and bones will be damaged to varying degrees, seriously endangering physical health. If not treated in time after infection with syphilis, it can even be disabling and fatal.
So, how is syphilis transmitted? There are mainly the following transmission routes:
Sexual transmission, accounting for about 95%;
Blood transmission, such as blood transfusions, sharing syringes, tattoos, etc.;
Mother-to-child transmission, such as placental infections, childbirth, breastfeeding, etc.;
In addition to the route of transmission, infection with syphilis also has two conditions, namely: (1) there is a large amount of treponema pallidum in the blood or body fluids; (2) the skin and mucous membranes are damaged, or directly in contact with blood.
In addition, the incubation period of syphilis ranges widely, generally 9 to 90 days. After infection, the patient's syphilis serum response will be positive, but there will be no obvious symptoms, and most cases will occur after 2 to 4 weeks.
After Treponema pallidum enters the human body for a few hours, it will invade the nearby lymph nodes, and with the help of blood circulation, it will reach all parts of the body in 2 to 3 days, damaging nerves and blood vessels, inducing endometritis and surrounding inflammation in the dermis, and appearing a variety of rash manifestations.
Clinically, syphilis can be divided into stages I, II and III. Primary syphilis can cause significant skin damage, causing thrombosis or obstructive lymphangitis, and mild fibrous lesions in advanced stages. The symptoms of secondary syphilis are variable, the specificity is not strong, and it is easy to miss or misdiagnose, and vigilance should be raised. Skin manifestations at different periods are as follows:
1. Stage I syphilis: hard chancre
Chancroid is the main symptom of primary syphilis, manifested as a single round or oval ulcer, about 1 to 2 cm in diameter, painless and itchy, clear boundaries, soft texture, periphery bulge, and a small amount of secretion on the red surface. Chancroids tend to occur in the private parts and are more common in the breasts, lips, tongue, anus and other areas.
After 3 to 8 weeks of chancre, it will naturally resolve, leaving a dark red scar.
2. Secondary syphilis: skin damage
After 6 to 8 weeks of abstinence, the chancre enters the secondary stage of syphilis.
At this time, Treponema pallidum has reached the skin, heart, bone, blood vessels and other parts with blood circulation, causing multi-system damage, and there will be symmetrically distributed rashes, such as papules, macules, etc., and will also cause flat ecgrustatic warts. In addition, there are significant head lesions, known in technical terms as "syphilitic baldness", and multiple red spots and papules the size of mung beans appear on the scalp, covered with yellow or white scales.
Graph source network
3. Tertiary syphilis: invasion of internal organs
That is, late syphilis, in addition to the performance of primary and secondary syphilis, important organs such as the heart will also be damaged, resulting in a fatal risk. Although the rash of tertiary syphilis is small in number, it is relatively destructive and asymmetrically distributed, and after healing, it will leave atrophic scars and affect the appearance.
After the patient knows that he is infected with syphilis, his heart is full of mixed tastes, and he will worry about not being cured. Syphilis was once an incurable disease, but now it is no longer a serious disease, and through standardized treatment, the symptoms can be eliminated without leaving sequelae.
The treatment cycle and treatment effect of different patients are different, and if you want to "get rid of" syphilis as soon as possible, you must face the reality and treat it in time.
"Plum repellent treatment" has certain specifications, which are roughly as follows:
Long-acting penicillin injection once a week for 3 weeks; after 3 weeks, the patient should be rechecked regularly, every 3 months, to check whether the titer drops to 1/4; if the titer is ideal, the patient should be rechecked every six months to ensure that there is no rebound.
Syphilis is very contagious, in daily life to prevent syphilis, we must do:
Avoid high-risk sexual behavior, use condoms correctly, avoid polygamy;
Pay attention to personal hygiene, do not share towels, razors, nail clippers, toothbrushes and other items with others;
When performing invasive behaviors such as ear piercings, tattoos, and tooth extractions, go to a regular institution;
If you are infected with syphilis, you must actively treat it, and do not be afraid of the eyes of others. Your own physical health is more important than other people's pointing, isn't it?
Resources: History of syphilis. Fujian Disease Control . 2021-08-31 [2] Syphilis, how toxic is it? 2021-05-07 [3] Be alert! The well-behaved woman is infected with this disease, and the culprit is actually it, and no matter how much she likes it, she must be restrained. China Medical Tribune . 2021-03-06
Reproduction without the author's permission is prohibited