Syphilis Diagnosis & Management

Stages: • Primary: painless chancre (3–90 days post-exposure). • Secondary (4–10 weeks post-chancre): rash (palms + soles classical), fever, lymphadenopathy, condyloma lata, mucous patches. • Latent: asymptomatic, serology positive (early <2 years; late >2 years or unknown). • Tertiary: gummatous, cardiovascular, neurosyphilis (years-decades). Serology: • Treponemal-specific (TP-PA, FTA-ABS, EIA): positive lifelong even after treatment. • Non-treponemal (RPR, VDRL): titre falls with treatment; useful for monitoring.