Congenital syphilis

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Congenital syphilis
Classifications and external resources

ICD-10	A50.
ICD-9	090
DiseasesDB	12744
MeSH	D013590

Congenital syphilis is syphilis present in utero and at birth, and occurs when a child is born to a mother with secondary or tertiary syphilis. Untreated syphilis results in a high risk of a bad outcome of pregnancy. Syphilis can cause miscarriages, premature births, stillbirths, or death of newborn babies. Some infants with congenital syphilis have symptoms at birth, but most develop symptoms later. Untreated babies can have deformities, delays in development, or seizures along with many other problems such as rash, fever, swollen liver and spleen, anemia, and jaundice. Sores on infected babies are infectious. Rarely, the symptoms of syphilis go unseen in infants so that they develop the symptoms of late-stage syphilis, including damage to their bones, teeth, eyes, ears, and brains, later on.^[1]

According to the CDC, 40% of births to syphilitic mothers are stillborn, 40-70% of the survivors will be infected, and 12% of these will subsequently die.

Early congenital syphilis
Classifications and external resources

ICD-10	A50.1-3.
ICD-9	090
MeSH	D013590

Contents 1 Early congenital syphilis 2 Manifestations of congenital syphilis 3 See also 4 External links 5 References

[edit] Early congenital syphilis

This is a subset of cases of congenital syphilis. Newborns may be asymptomatic and are only identified on routine prenatal screening. If not identified and treated, these newborns develop poor feeding and rhinorrhea. By definition, early congenital syphilis occurs in children between 0 and 2 years old^[2]. After, they can develop late congenital syphilis.

Symptomatic newborns, if not stillborn, are born premature, with enlargement of the liver, spleen, skeletal abnormalities, pneumonia and a bullous skin disease known as pemphigus syphiliticus. ^[3]

[edit] Manifestations of congenital syphilis

• abnormal x-rays
• Hutchinson's teeth (centrally notched, widely-spaced peg-shaped upper central incisors)
• mulberry molars (sixth year molars with multiple poorly developed cusps)
• frontal bossing
• saddle nose
• poorly developed maxillae
• enlarged liver
• enlarged spleen
• petechiae
• other skin rash
• anemia
• lymph node enlargement
• jaundice
• pseudoparalysis
• snuffles, the name given to rhinitis in this situation.
• rhagades, linear scars at the angles of the mouth and nose result from bacterial infection of skin lesions

Death from congenital syphilis is usually through pulmonary hemorrhage.

[edit] See also

• Syphilis

[edit] External links

• Chorus 00655

[edit] References

1. ^ http://www.niaid.nih.gov/factsheets/stdsyph.htm accessed 10/17/2006
2. ^ http://www.pitt.edu/~SUPER1/lecture/lec13881/008.htm
3. ^ http://www.emedicine.com/ped/topic2193.htm