Home Remedies For Syphilis: Causes, Symptoms, Risk Factors, Prevention - Dr Appiah
After
the initial infection, the syphilis bacteria can lie dormant in your body for
decades before becoming active again. Early syphilis can be cured, sometimes
with a single injection of penicillin. Without treatment, syphilis can severely
damage your heart, brain or other organs, and can be life-threatening.
Syphilis
rates in the United States have been declining among women since 2010, but
rising among men, particularly men who have sex with men. The genital sores
associated with syphilis can make it easier to become infected with HIV, the
virus that causes AIDS.
SYMPTOMS OF SYPHILIS
Syphilis
develops in stages, and symptoms vary with each stage. But the stages may
overlap, and symptoms don't always occur in the same order. You may be infected
with syphilis and not notice any symptoms for years.
Primary syphilis
The
first sign of syphilis is a small sore, called a chancre (SHANG-kur). The sore
appears at the spot where the bacteria entered your body. While most people
infected with syphilis develop only one chancre, some people develop several of
them. The chancre usually develops about three weeks after exposure. Many
people who have syphilis don't notice the chancre because it's usually
painless, and it may be hidden within the vagina or rectum. The chancre will
heal on its own within six weeks.
Secondary syphilis
Within a
few weeks of the original chancre healing, you may experience a rash that
begins on your trunk but eventually covers your entire body — even the palms of
your hands and the soles of your feet. This rash is usually not itchy and may
be accompanied by wart-like sores in the mouth or genital area. Some people
also experience muscle aches, fever, sore throat and swollen lymph nodes. These
signs and symptoms may disappear within a few weeks or repeatedly come and go
for as long as a year.
Latent syphilis
If you
aren't treated for syphilis, the disease moves from the secondary to the latent
(hidden) stage, when you have no symptoms. The latent stage can last for years.
Signs and symptoms may never return, or the disease may progress to the
tertiary (third) stage.
Tertiary (late) syphilis
About 15 to 30 percent of people infected with syphilis who don't get treatment will develop complications known as tertiary (late) syphilis. In the late stages, the disease may damage your brain, nerves, eyes, heart, blood vessels, liver, bones and joints. These problems may occur many years after the original, untreated infection.
Congenital syphilis
Babies
born to women who have syphilis can become infected through the placenta or
during birth. Most newborns with congenital syphilis have no symptoms, although
some experience a rash on the palms of their hands and the soles of their feet.
Later symptoms may include deafness, teeth deformities and saddle nose — where
the bridge of the nose collapses.
CAUSES OF SYPHILIS
The
cause of syphilis is a bacterium called Treponema pallidum. The most common
route of transmission is through contact with an infected person's sore during
sexual activity. The bacteria enter your body through minor cuts or abrasions
in your skin or mucous membranes. Syphilis is contagious during its primary and
secondary stages, and sometimes in the early latent period.
Less
commonly, syphilis may spread through direct unprotected close contact with an
active lesion (such as during kissing) or through an infected mother to her
baby during pregnancy or childbirth (congenital syphilis).
Syphilis
can't be spread by using the same toilet, bathtub, clothing or eating utensils,
or from doorknobs, swimming pools or hot tubs.
Once
cured, syphilis doesn't recur. However, you can become reinfected if you have
contact with someone's syphilis sore.
RISK
FACTORS
You face
an increased risk of acquiring syphilis if you:
Engage
in unprotected sex
Have sex
with multiple partners
Are a
man who has sex with men
Are
infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS
COMPLICATIONS
Without
treatment, syphilis can lead to damage throughout your body. Syphilis also
increases the risk of HIV infection and, for women, can cause problems during
pregnancy. Treatment can help prevent future damage but can't repair or reverse
damage that's already occurred.
Small
bumps or tumors
Called
gummas, these bumps can develop on your skin, bones, liver or any other organ
in the late stage of syphilis. Gummas usually disappear after treatment with
antibiotics.
Neurological
problems
Syphilis
can cause a number of problems with your nervous system, including:
Meningitis
Deafness
Visual
problems
Dementia
Cardiovascular
problems
These
may include bulging (aneurysm) and inflammation of the aorta — your body's
major artery — and of other blood vessels. Syphilis may also damage heart
valves.
HIV
infection
Adults
with sexually transmitted syphilis or other genital ulcers have an estimated
two- to fivefold increased risk of contracting HIV. A syphilis sore can bleed
easily, providing an easy way for HIV to enter your bloodstream during sexual
activity.
Pregnancy
and childbirth complications
If
you're pregnant, you may pass syphilis to your unborn baby. Congenital syphilis
greatly increases the risk of miscarriage, stillbirth or your newborn's death
within a few days after birth.
TESTS
AND DIAGNOSIS
Syphilis
can be diagnosed by testing samples of:
Blood.
Blood tests can confirm the presence of antibodies that the body produces to
fight infection. The antibodies to the bacteria that cause syphilis remain in
your body for years, so the test can be used to determine a current or past
infection.
Fluid
from sores. Your doctor may scrape a small sample of cells from a sore to be
analyzed by microscope in a lab. This test can be done only during primary or
secondary syphilis, when sores are present. The scraping can reveal the
presence of bacteria that cause syphilis.
Cerebral
spinal fluid. If it's suspected that you have nervous system complications of
syphilis, your doctor may also suggest collecting a sample of cerebrospinal
fluid through a procedure called a lumbar puncture (spinal tap).
Through
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, your local health department
offers partner services, which will help you notify your sexual partners that
they may be infected. That way, your partners can be tested and treated and the
spread of syphilis can be curtailed.
LIFESTYLE
AND HOME REMEDIES
To help
prevent the spread of syphilis, follow these suggestions:
Abstain
or be monogamous. The only certain way to avoid syphilis is to forgo having
sex. The next-best option is to have mutually monogamous sex with one partner
who is uninfected.
Use a
latex condom. Condoms can reduce your risk of contracting syphilis, but only if
the condom covers the syphilis sores.
Avoid
recreational drugs. Excessive use of alcohol or other drugs can cloud yourjudgment and lead to unsafe sexual practices.
Screening
for pregnant women
People
can be infected with syphilis and not know it. In light of the often deadly
effects syphilis can have on unborn children, health officials recommend that
all pregnant women be screened for the disease.
HOME REMEDY FOR SYPHILIS
Get 3
bulbs of garlic and 8 limes.
Cut
them into pieces.
Soak
all into one-and-half litres of water.
Boil
for half an hour to become natural hot drink.
Dosage:
One 3 tablespoonful, 2 times daily
EDITORS NOTE: NOT
RECOMMENDED FOR PREGNANT WOMEN AND LACTATING MOTHERS.