An increase in the number of people infected with syphilis in Chile, especially in the regions of Antofagasta, Atacama and Metropolitan, registered the Ministry of Health during 2022.
This is the predominant sexually transmitted disease in the country today, with 50% of cases, above HIV reaching 30% of the total.
The director of the Master in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Talca, Sergio Wehinger, explained that this disease is a “systemic sexually transmitted infection, caused by the bacterium treponema pallidum. (…) Of every 100 people who have contact with her, 30 are infected. It can also be transferred from the mother to the fetus, causing mortality of 30 to 40% of them, and if the child is born it can present malformations. ”
The academic added that this disease has several stages. The first one is characterized by reddish lesions, called chancre, in the genital area.
“Only one may appear, which looks like an allergy lesion, but it doesn’t itch or hurt. Later as the disease progresses, it can be observed in other parts of the body, such as the trunk or palms of hands and feet, moving to the second stage of infection, where headache, swollen lymph nodes, sore throat, fever and malaise occur, “he said.
Wehinger said that this last phase is where the disease is usually found with tests that detect rare or foreign antibodies that appear with syphilis.
Being a bacterium, he explained, it has treatment based on antibiotics. “The earlier it is detected, the better the patient’s evolution. Because there is a third stage or late syphilis, which is when the bacteria has been spreading through the person’s body for years and can affect any organ, especially bones or nervous system causing a fatal disease,” he said.
The academic added that, although there is treatment with antibiotics, we must bear in mind the problem of resistance to them.
Importance of education
Professor Wehinger commented that one of the reasons for the rise of the disease in Chile could be due to the pandemic, which decreased the screening of other infections or ailments, or the prevention of these, as well as the loss or decrease in the perception of the risk of contracting the disease, especially in young men, between 15 and 30 years old. which is the group most affected by this contagion.
The scientist also stressed that, despite the advances in sex education in our country, we are right: “The best cure is prevention, and in that sense, responsible sexual life behavior is the best to combat venereal diseases in general.”
“We must remember that a significant percentage of people who have suffered from syphilis may suffer over time from other sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV,” he said.
Proper sexual behavior in terms of health, Wehinger said, is to always use a condom and watch for signs or symptoms of this or another such disease.
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