Syphilis, the Not-So-Great Pretender

Sexually transmitted infections in Arizona continue to circulate. That’s right, we have viral and bacterial STIs throughout our state.

Syphilis is one that continues to cause harm to people and fetuses alike. Syphilis is curable in people, including mothers and their unborn children. When we have babies born with syphilis that means we have pregnant people not going in for prenatal care. Why would someone not go in for prenatal care? Besides everyone wanting to touch their growing abdomens, pregnant people face a lot of scrutiny.

Side note, ask before touching anyone, especially hormonal pregnant people. I digress.

Between January 1 and August 31 last year we had 121 babies born in Arizona with syphilis, and 13 of them died. This means more babies were born with syphilis in the first eight months of 2022 than in all of 2021. Trust me when I say you do not want to start life with syphilis.

On a happier note, we were able to prevent 95 cases of syphilis in newborns because those mothers sought prenatal care. It’s amazing how well this works. It also means that we need to be more supportive and less judgmental of pregnant people, and encourage them to seek prenatal care. If they are uninsured, they can get insurance and care for themselves and the unborn baby by going to a County health clinic. The people there can assist those without insurance by applying for AHCCCS and Women, Infant and Child care to help with the growing baby. WIC provides a lot of help to mothers. For people who do not have documentation, there is still assistance available for their health and the health of the unborn child.

Syphilis affects the brain, liver, bones, joints, optic nerve and eyesight. It is a curable but insidious bacterium.

It’s sometimes called the Great Pretender because it can look like other health conditions, making diagnosis a medical cat-and-mouse game. It may look like someone has meningitis, losing eyesight, dementia, mental illness, loss of depth perception, loss of peripheral vision, and more. There will be body rashes that can resemble an allergic reaction to a detergent or body product.

Let’s talk about symptoms and how the disease spreads. Syphilis spreads between humans through contact with mucous membranes or skin. The first sign of a syphilitic infection is a small and painless chancre sore in the area of contact, which can be the mouth, penis, vulva, vaginal area or rectum, so unless you are checking your undercarriage after sex you may miss it. Syphilis develops in stages, and symptoms can overlap and vary. The chancre is easily missed and even if discovered, because it is painless, it’s easy to dismiss. The chancre will heal on its own over three to six weeks.

After the chancre heals, time will pass and you may develop a rash across your torso that will then cover your body, including palms of hands and soles of feet. This rash will not itch. At the site of your exposure to syphilis you may develop wartlike sores that may hurt. These white-to-grey lesions are called condylomata lata, and they’re reported in 10-45% of people infected with syphilis. See how the symptoms vary?

You may lose some hair, develop a fever, swollen glands, achy muscles, soreness at the site of exposure, and these symptoms will pass, too. They can also reappear or come and go for a year.

The annual average incidence of syphilis in women has increased 449% since 2015 in Arizona. Up to 40% of syphilitic pregnancies result in newborn deaths or stillbirths, and 77% of babies born with syphilis are asymptomatic. We can do better for ourselves and the children coming into the world.

How can we do better with syphilis and other sexually transmitted infections? It starts with each of us. Talk about them, spread awareness. We can also quit judging others who get these communicable diseases. That’s right, make 2023 the year we collectively stop the stigma. Stigma kills, and it has been killing people for millennia. Stigma prevents people from seeking care, from talking about things and finding answers. Think about a time when you were judged, and people did not have all the information about you. How did it make you feel? Let’s stop the stigma and work as a society to improve the health of everyone in our community. We can stop syphilis and stigma at the same time.

This is Hedda Fay reminding you that you are a primate and you have 27 bones in each hand and 26 in each foot that you may not even be able to name, but they help you every day. So don’t be too quick to judge others when you are still learning about yourself!