Syphilis is a very serious disease that is transmitted through sexual contact or household contact. This disease affects all body systems. In the absence of the necessary treatment, it can last for ten years or more, sometimes aggravating, then subsiding again. All this time, a person remains a distributor of infection.
Transmission routes
The most contagious are patients with primary syphilis who have ulcers in the mouth, on the genitals or in the rectum. The infection can be passed from mother to fetus during pregnancy. There is also the possibility of infection during a blood transfusion.
Very rare cases of infection in the domestic way. Pale treponema, namely this bacterium that causes syphilis, cannot live long outside the human body and quickly dies. But with a confluence of certain situations, it can get from the patient to the he althy one, if the latter has wounds of any nature in his mouth, and he used the glass immediatelyafter a patient with syphilis who has sores in his mouth. Another way for bacteria to penetrate from an infected organism into a he althy one is to move onto a towel that a patient with syphilis used to dry himself. The microbe has other ways of infecting a new victim in the domestic way, but they are observed in isolated cases.
The last stage of syphilis is without a doubt the most dangerous. It belongs to the tertiary period, manifests itself when treatment is insufficient or absent at all in the early stages of the development of syphilis. The disease now affects fewer people than it did in past decades because the rule is to screen for treponema pallidum (RW reaction). Such an analysis must be performed for all pregnant women, people who are about to have an operation, when registering for many non-venereal diseases.
Characteristics of the last stage
Tertiary syphilis appears either after three or four years, or after ten or more years from the time of infection. Most often, this stage is due to insufficient therapy or incorrect dosage of drugs. A significant role is played by the negligent attitude and indiscipline of the patient, since it is difficult not to notice the signs of syphilis. There are separate situations when the disease is triggered due to its latent manifestation, in which the symptoms are not expressed. There are also a small number of cases (three to five percent) where syphilis progresses to the tertiary period, even with timely and competent treatment.
Onthe occurrence of syphilis of the last stage is influenced by various factors. For example, if the body is weakened by any serious diseases, then the pathology can further worsen (for example, with hepatitis, tuberculosis, or serious inflammatory processes). Drug addiction, alcoholism, living in conditions that do not meet sanitary standards, hard physical labor without rest, strong and frequent emotional upheavals can also have an impact.
Affecting all body systems
If the first and second stages are characterized by the location of lesions on the mucous membranes and skin, then during the tertiary period, all body systems are affected. In some cases, the pathological process even extends to the joints, blood vessels, bones. Tissues are destroyed, this is accompanied by the appearance of infiltrates, that is, seals that form due to the accumulation of cell components, lymph or blood.
Last stage syphilis usually occurs in the elderly or in children. Patients sometimes note that the manifestation of symptoms decreases over time, while others, on the contrary, diagnose deterioration. Sometimes it takes several years to get rid of the disease, and in some cases this process can continue throughout life.
Most often, late syphilis is characterized by distinctly pronounced symptoms that cannot be overlooked. If the patient sees manifestations of this disease, he should immediately seek help from a doctor who will prescribe him timely therapy and prevent possible complications. Characteristics of the diseaseare classified into several types, based on which particular system of the body was affected. Let's figure out how to recognize the last stage of syphilis.
Signs of skin lesions
Infiltrates can form on the skin either in the form of tertiary syphilides, that is, tubercles, or in the form of gums. At the first, several such tubercles appear on the patient's body, sometimes affecting not only the upper layers, but also the fiber under the skin. Usually their number is no more than twenty or thirty, they are arranged randomly: both the entire surface of the body and its individual parts can be affected. The bumps are usually red or bluish in color, firm to the touch, but painless. The patient does not feel any physical discomfort because of them, he is unpleasant only from a psychological point of view. Signs of late stage syphilis are easy to distinguish from other sexual diseases.
Tertiary gummas are essentially quite large nodes that are found in deep layers of the skin. As they develop, these formations contribute to the destruction of adjacent he althy tissue and form scars. Most often, only one gumma appears on the skin, in more rare cases, their group formations occur. There are other symptoms of end-stage syphilis.
Characteristics of mucosal lesions
Compared to the skin, the mucous membranes of the human body are even more vulnerable to all sorts of negative influences, both external and internal. That is why they are much more likely to be damaged due to syphilis of the last stage. Gummies predominantly appear on the mucous membranes, in more rare cases there are tubercles that look like a rash. If left untreated, gummas that start out as nodules become ulcers.
Gumma often appears on the tongue, while it can be either single or group. As it develops, the nodule pulls the tongue, as a result of which natural processes are greatly hampered. At the same time, the patient's speech is difficult, the process of eating is complicated, the reaction of taste buds is significantly dulled.
The most dangerous are lesions of the hard palate, since in many cases the gum formed there also affects cartilage and bone tissue. If there is no timely therapy, such a nodule transforms into an ulcer, and after that an unnatural communication appears between the oral and nasal cavities. This process affects subsequent speech disorders, makes it difficult to eat and increases the likelihood of infectious diseases due to the secretion secreted by the nasal cavity entering the mouth. In the last stage of syphilis, the nose is most often affected. In 5% of patients, due to the destruction of cartilage, the nose may sink (fall inward). Correct this defect after the end of the treatment of syphilis is possible only with the help of plastic surgery.
Signs of damage to the musculoskeletal system
The Tertiary period is different from the primary and secondary stagesdiseases in that it can affect not only the mucous membranes and skin, but also other systems, such as the musculoskeletal system. Patients with such a lesion feel the most severe discomfort, often they receive a disability for all their remaining years. A photo of the last stage of syphilis is presented below.
Initially, gummas affect only the periosteum, they can only be seen during an X-ray examination. Developing more and more, this lesion becomes denser, its size increases, and you can already feel it even with ordinary probing. After that, the gumma either develops further and takes on the appearance of a tumor, or becomes an ulcer (in most cases). With significant destruction If the situation is especially neglected, then in addition to the bone, the bone marrow is also damaged, as a result of which the general signs of the disease worsen.
Features of damage to the nervous system
Currently, neurosyphilis is quite common. It is caused by the entry of pathogens into the brain. Together with the disruption of the musculoskeletal system, this pathological development causes considerable discomfort to the patient, greatly contributes to a decrease in the quality of his life, and negatively affects the functioning of other body systems.
At the same time, neurosyphilis is characterized by symptoms that are identical to other diseases of the nervous system, which is why, with its latent form, it is not possible to immediatelydetermine the exact cause. This form is characterized by the following features:
- permanent headaches;
- dizziness;
- loss of concentration;
- tinnitus;
- vomiting and nausea;
- bad dream;
- defects of the auditory and visual apparatus;
- personality changes in terms of the psyche.
Treatment of end-stage syphilis
Therapy is carried out with antibacterial drugs and other means that affect the causative agent of the disease. The doctor will determine how long the treatment will be, how much medication is needed. It is important to follow the correct diet, work and rest. Alcohol, drugs and nicotine are excluded from the diet. Procedures are required to heal lesions on the skin. The state of the body is constantly monitored. Blood and urine tests are given, ultrasound and ECG are performed.
What complications can occur?
If you do not treat tertiary syphilis on time or use therapy that is not suitable for this, the risk of worsening the general condition of the patient increases. Damage to the cardiovascular system is dangerous, leading to acute heart failure and heart attack. In addition, patients with long-term syphilis may experience visual loss due to optic nerve atrophy. A certain proportion of patients develop tassel dorsalis, leading to the fact that it becomes difficult for the patient to move, orientatethe position of your body in the space of the body nerve. In addition to all these troubles, there is a possibility of death, which is noted in twenty-five percent of cases of infection with this disease.
