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De Lairesse, himself a painter and art theorist, suffered from congenital syphilis that severely deformed his face and eventually blinded him. [1] This is a list of famous historical figures diagnosed with or strongly suspected as having had syphilis at some time. Many people who acquired syphilis were treated and recovered; some died from it.
Treponema pallidum, formerly known as Spirochaeta pallida, is a microaerophilic, gram-negative, spirochaete bacterium with subspecies that cause the diseases syphilis, bejel (also known as endemic syphilis), and yaws. [1] It is known to be transmitted only among humans and baboons. [2]
Syphilis (/ ˈ s ɪ f ə l ɪ s /) is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. [1] The signs and symptoms depend on the stage it presents: primary, secondary, latent or tertiary.
Intravenous penicillin has been the primary treatment for syphilitic aortitis since the 1940s. The underlying bacterium of syphilis, T. pallidum, continues to be sensitive to penicillin as the lack of horizontal gene transfer mechanisms makes it difficult for the bacterium to mutate and resist treatment. [4]
General paresis, also known as general paralysis of the insane (GPI), paralytic dementia, or syphilitic paresis is a severe neuropsychiatric disorder, classified as an organic mental disorder, and is caused by late-stage syphilis and the chronic meningoencephalitis and cerebral atrophy that are associated with this late stage of the disease when left untreated.
The fluorescent treponemal antibody absorption (FTA-ABS) test is a diagnostic test for syphilis.Using antibodies specific for the Treponema pallidum species, such tests would be assumed to be more specific than non-treponemal testing such as VDRL but have been shown repeatedly to be sensitive but not specific for the diagnosis of neurosyphilis in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
For primary syphilis, TPPA has a sensitivity of 85% to 100%, and a specificity of 98% to 100%. [2] In secondary and late-latent syphilis, TPPA has a sensitivity of 98% to 100%. [2] Antibodies against other treponemal organisms, such as the T. pallidum subspecies endemicum, pertenue, or carateum, can cause false positive results.
The rapid plasma reagin test (RPR test or RPR titer) is a type of rapid diagnostic test that looks for non-specific antibodies in the blood of the patient that may indicate an infection by syphilis or related non-venereal treponematoses. It is one of several nontreponemal tests for syphilis (along with the Wassermann test and the VDRL test).