Re: the fate of syphilis and syphilitics

[Guest guest]

I believe syphilis as slipped under the radar screen

for a couple of reasons. First is is supposed to be

rare and second it has turned into a moral disease not

just a medical problem. I watched a frontline show

(PBS) a few years back about a group of teenagers in

Atlanta GA. where syphilis broke out in high school.

and the thrust of the program was loose morals and

poor judgment was the cause and not a bug. There are

other diseases that are more moral based then medical,

so when the medical field looks down on a disease you

don't get much help. Drinking, smoking and drug

addiction to name a few. My thoughts Jimd

--- Hodologica <usenethod@...> wrote:

>

> I have been trying to learn everything about

> spirochetoses because the

> pathology of lyme disease is so unclear.

>

> Syphilis once was pretty much the most dreaded

> infection. Even into

> the antibiotic age it was considered often

> incurable. It definitely

> still exists in some of the areas where alot of

> biomedical research is

> conducted.

>

> Hence I have been mystified by its " disappearance. "

> I find virtually

> zero syphilis biomedical research going on, except

> into its treatment

> in people with AIDS. Ive never heard of anyone with

> syphilis as a

> chronic health problem - nor seen reference to it as

> such in

> contemporary literature, absent HIV.

>

> PMID 15548491, Dec 2004, studies neurosyphilis in

> 161 South African

> patients, the largest such contemporary study.

>

> " The average duration of tx was 14.9 days in

> hospital, the commonest

> treatment being 20 million units of penicillin G

> daily. Evidence of

> recurrence of neurosychilis, based on clinical

> deterioration, a rising

> CSF VDRL titer, or worsening of markers of disease

> activity in CSF,

> was found in 20 patients (12%).

> " THe outcome was known in 92 cases [three fifths].

> Twenty-one

> patients recovered completely, 40 suffered from

> residual cognitive

> loss, 10 had psychiatric disorders, 7 had residual

> seizures, 7 had

> residual hemiparesis, one suffered from tabes

> dorsalis, and six died. "

>

>

>

>

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

I think the last I read on it was that it was on the rise again.

And not just in the developing countries.

It's definitely got a (moral) stigma attached to it, and no one

talks about it.

Personally I know I was totally flipped out when 2 of my docs told

me I was exhibiting signs of late stage syphilis(there are 2 stages

in the tiertary stage).

There is a subset of people, reated late, where it stays dormant

for the rest of their lives (but in another subset it kills them).

It's interesting to read about if you don't have it... now I can

laugh about it- but My DOcs said a few shots of penicillin would cure

me, even it was syphilis- guess they didn't read the same articles I

did.

Barb

> >

> > I have been trying to learn everything about

> > spirochetoses because the

> > pathology of lyme disease is so unclear.

> >

> > Syphilis once was pretty much the most dreaded

> > infection. Even into

> > the antibiotic age it was considered often

> > incurable. It definitely

> > still exists in some of the areas where alot of

> > biomedical research is

> > conducted.

> >

> > Hence I have been mystified by its " disappearance. "

> > I find virtually

> > zero syphilis biomedical research going on, except

> > into its treatment

> > in people with AIDS. Ive never heard of anyone with

> > syphilis as a

> > chronic health problem - nor seen reference to it as

> > such in

> > contemporary literature, absent HIV.

> >

> > PMID 15548491, Dec 2004, studies neurosyphilis in

> > 161 South African

> > patients, the largest such contemporary study.

> >

> > " The average duration of tx was 14.9 days in

> > hospital, the commonest

> > treatment being 20 million units of penicillin G

> > daily. Evidence of

> > recurrence of neurosychilis, based on clinical

> > deterioration, a rising

> > CSF VDRL titer, or worsening of markers of disease

> > activity in CSF,

> > was found in 20 patients (12%).

> > " THe outcome was known in 92 cases [three fifths].

> > Twenty-one

> > patients recovered completely, 40 suffered from

> > residual cognitive

> > loss, 10 had psychiatric disorders, 7 had residual

> > seizures, 7 had

> > residual hemiparesis, one suffered from tabes

> > dorsalis, and six died. "

> >

> >

> >

> >

>

> __________________________________________________

>

[Guest guest]

I suspect late stage syphillis is strongly implicated in AIDS. Like

Lyme there are no good tests to detect late stage syphillis and the few

weeks of penecillin which is the standard treatment for syphillis infection

is no doubt totally inadequate. Late stage syphillis like lyme damages the

immune system and allows co-infections to flourish. Combine this with HIV

viral infection and you have a recipe for devastation

http://www.anapsid.org/lyme/jones.html

[infections] the fate of syphilis and syphilitics

>

>

> I have been trying to learn everything about spirochetoses because the

> pathology of lyme disease is so unclear.

>

> Syphilis once was pretty much the most dreaded infection. Even into

> the antibiotic age it was considered often incurable. It definitely

> still exists in some of the areas where alot of biomedical research is

> conducted.

>

> Hence I have been mystified by its " disappearance. " I find virtually

> zero syphilis biomedical research going on, except into its treatment

> in people with AIDS. Ive never heard of anyone with syphilis as a

> chronic health problem - nor seen reference to it as such in

> contemporary literature, absent HIV.

>

> PMID 15548491, Dec 2004, studies neurosyphilis in 161 South African

> patients, the largest such contemporary study.

>

> " The average duration of tx was 14.9 days in hospital, the commonest

> treatment being 20 million units of penicillin G daily. Evidence of

> recurrence of neurosychilis, based on clinical deterioration, a rising

> CSF VDRL titer, or worsening of markers of disease activity in CSF,

> was found in 20 patients (12%).

> " THe outcome was known in 92 cases [three fifths]. Twenty-one

> patients recovered completely, 40 suffered from residual cognitive

> loss, 10 had psychiatric disorders, 7 had residual seizures, 7 had

> residual hemiparesis, one suffered from tabes dorsalis, and six died. "

>

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