Modes of Transmission:
1.Contact with open lesion of infected person:common mode of infection is venereal infection by sexual contact and kissing (Atention!: the infection in the secondary stage reach the mucous of the mouth).
2.Exposure to infected blood by:
-using blood contaminated syringes and needles for inoculation of medicines or taking blood sample or by intravenous drug abuse.
-blood transfusion without precaution.
professional exposure of medical and paramedical and laboratory workers t infected blood.
3.Congenital Infection "inutero infection": transplacental infection from the 4th month of pregnancy to the end of delivery.
4.Contaminated articles and fomites::towels,clothing,drinking,cups and others are potentially infectious but their role is minor.
Period of Infectivity: Untreated cases are infectious during the primary and secondary stages of disease of varied period,usually 2-4 years.
Exit of Infection: the organisms exit in exudate of skin and mucous membrane lesions,blood and body fluids.
Incubation period: 3 weeks on the average.
Untreated cases pass through three basic Clinical Stages over many years:
1.Primary Syphilis: "Chancre" is the first manifestation that appears at the portal of entry usually on geniatlia and occasionally on other parts in nonveneral infection.
"Chancre" is indurated,firm,painless,highly infectious ulcer with enlarged lymph nodes and disappears spontaneously in 4-6 weeks.
2.Secondary Syphilis: this stage is characterised by:
-generalised skin rash
-patchy lesions of mucous membranes specially on mouth and genitalia.They are highly infectious.
-involvement of eyes and other pars of the body.The secondary stage syphilis disappear spontaneous after weeks or months,followed by a latent period of years before the 3rd stage appears.
3.Symptomatic Syphilis: involves different parts of the body leading to cardiovascular syphilis and neurosyphilis.
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