Sexual Transmitted Disease : Syphilis

STD’s have been around for a long time, dating back to 1550 B.C. During this time the first recorded form of an STD was found. They were reported to be found in Europe. Gonorrhea and Syphilis are recorded to be the two most common diseases in Europe. Some men on Christopher Columbus’s voyage brought back syphilis with them. Syphilis causes progressive destruction of the brain and spinal cord, leading to mental dysfunction and hallucinations, speech problems and general paresis (G. Burg). The common knowledge of STD’s have been around but have not been able to be treated up until around the late 1700s.

I thought someone could get syphilis by contacting a surface that an infected person touched. Syphilis is almost always transmitted by unprotected vaginal, oral, anal sexual activity, or from mother to newborn during delivery. It is usually transmitted when open lesions on an infected person come into contact with the mucous membranes or skin abrasions of the partner’s body during sexual activity. It may also be contracted by touching an infectious chancre. In the primary stage of syphilis, a hard, round, ulcer-like lesion appears at the site of infection two to four weeks after contact. A few months later, the secondary stage begins. A skin rash develops that darken after a while and burst, oozing a discharge. The spirochetes continue to multiply and burro into the circulatory system, central nervous system, and bones and may lie dormant for decades. Lastly, in the tertiary stage, large ulcers may form on the skin, liver, digestive organs, muscle tissue, lungs, or other organs which can be

Syphilis is a harsh sexually transmitted disease. It can be contracted through intercourse and orally with any age or gender. The infection is a spiral shaped bacteria that grows on the mucus of the genitals or mouth. Syphilis has three stages, the first stage is the presence of painless ulcers, also know as chancre. The open sore can develop anytime within ten to ninety days after you have contracted it, which at this time is very contagious. The next stage is where the symptoms really start to show,

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) that is characterized by sores known as chancres. These sores are typically found on the external genitals. There are three stages to the disease: Primary, Secondary and Latent/Late. Syphilis can also spread to the neurological systems as well as the ocular system. In the primary stage one or more of the chancres may appear where the infection has entered the body. The sores aren’t painful and may last three to six weeks (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). The

There are two theories to its nature: that it was brought over through the Columbian Exchange, and that it was present in the Americas before Columbus’ first voyage (123). Some theories state that it existed in the Old World in a mild form, then with the arrival of the Europeans, it mutated into the killer the Native Americans knew it as (126). It seems more likely that the disease existed in the Old World prior to 1493, since there are no records of syphilis on the voyage (137). Another theory presents the idea that syphilis is worldwide, but has different names and forms in different regions (142). Whatever the case, the disease is transmitted sexually, and the Europeans knew it to be an epidemic when the allegiance to marital fidelity crumbled in a society (148). Popular remedies for syphilis were mercury and guaiacum (153). A regular intake of mercury was known to cure syphilis, but the metal itself killed the patient (153). The New World provided another possible cure in the form of guaiacum wood, which made the patient sweat profusely in hopes to literally “sweat” the disease out of their system (152). Syphilis ruthlessly killed thousands of Native Americans during its run, but by the 17th century, it became considered a dangerous, but bearable infection

Two main hypotheses exist as to the origin of the disease. The first proposes that Syphilis had existed in Europe and Asia for years, arguing that the diseases had either laid dormant for years, went unnoticed, or only recently had mutated into a virulent strain. This is known as the "Pre-Columbian" theory (Kent ME, Romanelli F 2008).

it must be found not only within couple individuals but within a community, population and region itself. He thought that’s what happened in Europe in the New World when people were socially and sexually intimate with each other and it was so easy to contract the disease. Armelagos didn’t find enough evidence from the Old World but the isolated cases whereas New World was a treasury for the disease cases. Charlotte Roberts explains it by the era and the harshness of conditions of that time “people died at a young age due to other diseases such as Black death and chickenpox without even realizing they were infected with syphilis”.

There was a high concentration of syphilis, a high mortality rate and high health risks associated with the area. Syphilis has a pattern that makes it contagious in the early stages. It will create rashes and cause fever and headaches. It then goes into a period of latency and could last forever if you were lucky. In the case that you had a relapse it would spread to your brain and other internal organs.

The parasite is passed from an infected person to an uninfected person during sex. In women, the most commonly infected part of the body is the lower genital tract (vulva, vagina, or urethra), and in men, the most commonly infected body part is the inside of the penis (urethra). During sex, the parasite is usually transmitted from a penis to a vagina, or from a vagina to a penis, but it can also be passed from a vagina to another vagina. It is not common for the parasite to infect other body parts, like the hands, mouth, or anus.

With the changing tides of how Americans view the common household, same-sex relationships have begun to become more widely accepted nationwide. Same-sex marriages and LGBT adoption are now legal in all 50 states. These recent steps in legislation have been monumental for civil rights, but what effect do they have on the physical public health of the gay population? From history, it is known that the spread of disease has been higher in “immoral” sexual practices; for example, in the 1930s, some hospitals refused admission of patients with STDs and private physicians did not wish to treat these patients due to the supposed “transmission” of the disease (Eng, 1997). Sexuality and the opinion of sexual behaviors can vary by socioeconomic status,

A good epidemiological investigator takes several steps to conduct an outbreak investigation. The first step is to discuss the disease with someone knowledgeable about the disease, ask about similar outbreaks, what has been the source, how has it been transmitted, and who is at risk of contracting the disease ( Principles of Epidemiology in Public Health Practice,2016) . It’s also important to include state and federal departments in the investigation the staff in these agencies can have more information in the outbreak. Once this is complete a hypothesis can be created. In the syphilis outbreak case a large group of young people have been diagnosed with syphilis these groups of people have interacted sexually on a regular basis. Anyone in

Diagnosis has shown us that the first stages of syphilis necessitate on the mouth, rectum, or on the genitals which causes a painless sore. The second stage is distinguished by a rash. Time goes by to where more symptoms can occur from weeks, to months, to years in result of damage to the brain, nerves, eyes or heart. Common symptoms such as fatigue, itching, mouth ulcer, rash on the palms and soles, sore throat, swollen lymph nodes, weight loss, or rectal lining inflammation can occur in or on the human body. The latent stage doesn’t really show any symptoms that are noticeable but you are still infected and there is a possibility that the second stage could reoccur again. In the final stage which is tertiary, a small percentage of people who don’t seek treatment will fall into this stage which can also be life threatening. Blindness, deafness, mental illness, memory loss, damage of the soft tissue and bone, stokes or meningitis, heart disease and neuro-syphilis which is an infection of the spinal cord or the brain can all be in effect of the tertiary

It is possible and common for these rashes to be faint or hard to see, which can cause them to go unnoticed. Symptoms of the secondary stage can include a fever, swollen lymph glands, hair loss, weight loss, and fatigue. Without treatment, the symptoms of the Secondary stage will go away but the disease will progress to the Latent Stage. The Latent Stage is also known as the hidden stage because there are no apparent signs or symptoms present. This stage can last for years. The two types of Latent syphilis include Early Latent Syphilis, which means the initial infection occurred within 12 months, and Late Latent Syphilis which means the infection initially occurred within the last year. The final stage of syphilis is the Tertiary Stage. This possibly fatal stage can harm the organ systems such as the brain, liver, bones, and joints. Appearing between 10 and 30 years, this stage can cause death due to the untreated bacteria. Neurosyphilis, the bacterial invasion of the nervous system, is a result of this untreated bacteria. Neurosyphilis

The syphilis study should be eliminated because the research is unethical. According to Tuskegee University (2017),“ Researchers told the men participating in the study that they were treated for “bad blood.” This term was used locally by people to describe a host of diagnosable ailments including but not limited to anemia,fatigue, And syphilis.” (n.p.). It explains that the researchers wasn't telling the participants what they were being tested in. They just said a term that means many different types of illness. It actually lying to the participants, because even though the researchers knew what syphilis was they did not explain it, also they wasn't even treating them, they were just using the participants to run a exam. Also according Tuskegee

Syphilis affects the body in four stages: primary, secondary, latent, and tertiary. The first stage, the primary stage, begins to show symptoms approximately 3 weeks after contraction (“STD Facts-Syphilis” 2010). The first stage is marked by the appearance of a chancre sore, which usually appears at the sight of contraction of the bacteria. A chancre is a “small, hard, circular lesion” and this is where the bacteria grows and is highly contagious (Shmaefsky, Brian 2009). After about 3 weeks of the presence of the chancre sores, the sores go away, however, syphilis is still present in the body. Several weeks later, approximately 3-6 weeks, the secondary stage of syphilis begins to show, the skin rash. Characteristics of the rash include “rough, red, or reddish brown spots both on the palms of the hands and the bottoms of the feet”, also it can spread to other parts of the body (“STD Facts-Syphilis” 2010). The symptoms of secondary syphilis will go away in a few weeks, but without proper treatment, the disease will continue to advance. The next stage of syphilis is the latent stage, or the “hidden” stage, this stage happens after the primary and secondary stage of syphilis. Without