Syphilis how do you catch it

How Do You Catch Syphilis? Ways you Can Catch Syphilis without Having Penetrative Sex: Pregnant Women Pregnant women can unwittingly pass on Syphilis to their unborn children during the pregnancy or at the time of birth, if the child is born vaginally. Oral and Anal Sex If your partner has sores on their genitals when you conduct oral or anal sex, you risk the chance of catching syphilis from them. Skin-on-Skin Contact Simply touching syphilis sores can result in contracting the disease.

Sharing Sex Toys Sex toys that come into contact with infected sores can easily pass on the disease if they are shared before cleaning. Sharing Razors and Needles The use of needles and razors causes tiny nicks in the skin in which STIs such as Syphilis, could be contracted through. Sharing Towels or Clothing The only STI that can be contracted from the sharing of towels and clothing is public lice.

Symptoms and Effects of Syphilis Now that you know how Syphilis is spread, and if you can catch it without having sex, take some time learn about the various symptoms and effects of the disease. Primary Syphilis The first sign of syphilis will be a small sore a chancre at the point where the bacteria entered your body, usually around three weeks post-transmission. Secondary Syphilis After a few weeks you may develop a rash that begins around your genitals, although it will eventually spread over your entire body.

Latent Syphilis Untreated, syphilis will progress into latent syphilis, where you are still infected but have no symptoms. Tertiary Syphilis Tertiary syphilis, also known as late syphilis, is when the untreated disease begins to damage your brain, nerves, eyes, heart and other organs, bones, and joints. Neurosyphilis Like tertiary syphilis, neurosyphilis is late stage where the disease spreads to and damages the brain, nervous system and eyes.

Congenital Syphilis Mothers that have syphilis can pass on the disease to their unborn babies. How is Syphilis Treated? Related articles. Browse our range of private sexual health tests. However, if the infected person does not receive adequate treatment, the infection progresses to the secondary stage. This stage typically starts with the development of a rash on one or more areas of the body.

Rashes associated with secondary syphilis can appear when the primary chancre is healing or several weeks after the chancre has healed. The rash usually does not cause itching. The characteristic rash of secondary syphilis may appear as rough, red, or reddish brown spots both on the palms of the hands and the bottoms of the feet.

However, rashes with a different appearance may occur on other parts of the body, sometimes resembling rashes caused by other diseases. Sometimes rashes associated with secondary syphilis are so faint that they are not noticed. Large, raised, gray or white lesions, known as condyloma lata, may develop in warm, moist areas such as the mouth, underarm or groin region. In addition to rashes, symptoms of secondary syphilis may include fever, swollen lymph glands, sore throat, patchy hair loss, headaches, weight loss, muscle aches, and fatigue.

The symptoms of secondary syphilis will go away with or without treatment. However, without treatment, the infection will progress to the latent and possibly tertiary stage of disease. The latent hidden stage of syphilis is a period of time when there are no visible signs or symptoms of syphilis. Without treatment, the infected person will continue to have syphilis in their body even though there are no signs or symptoms.

Early latent syphilis is latent syphilis where infection occurred within the past 12 months. Late latent syphilis is latent syphilis where infection occurred more than 12 months ago.

Latent syphilis can last for years. Tertiary syphilis is rare and develops in a subset of untreated syphilis infections;, it can appear 10—30 years after infection was first acquired, and it can be fatal.

Tertiary syphilis can affect multiple organ systems, including the brain, nerves, eyes, heart, blood vessels, liver, bones, and joints.

Symptoms of tertiary syphilis vary depending on the organ system affected. Syphilis can invade the nervous system neurosyphilis , visual system ocular syphilis , or auditory system otosyphilis at any stage of infection. These infections can cause a wide range of symptoms. When a pregnant woman has syphilis, the infection can be transmitted to her unborn baby.

All pregnant women should be tested for syphilis at the first prenatal visit. Some women need to be tested again during the third trimester 28 weeks gestation and at delivery. This includes women who live in areas of high syphilis morbidity, are previously untested, had a positive screening test in the first trimester, or are at higher risk for syphilis i.

Depending on how long a pregnant woman has been infected, she may have a high risk of having a stillbirth or of giving birth to a baby who dies shortly after birth. Untreated syphilis in pregnant women results in infant death in up to 40 percent of cases.

An infected baby born alive may not have any signs or symptoms of disease. However, if not treated immediately, the baby may develop serious problems within a few weeks. They include: Having unprotected sex such as not using condoms or not using them correctly. This risk is high among men who have sex with other men. Having more than one sex partner and living in an area where syphilis is common. Having a sex partner who has syphilis.

Having sex with a partner who has many sex partners. Trading sex for drugs or money. Having HIV. What are the symptoms? Because syphilis is usually spread when people have sexual contact, chancres are often found in the mouth, the anus, or the genital area. They may also be found wherever the bacteria entered the body. Secondary stage: A skin rash and other symptoms may show up 2 to 12 weeks after a person is infected.

At this stage, it is very easy to spread the infection through contact with the mouth, the anus, the genitals, or any area where there is a skin rash. Latent stage: After the rash clears, a person may have a period with no symptoms. This is often called the "hidden stage. This stage may be as short as 1 year or last from 5 to 20 years.

Often, a woman with latent-stage syphilis doesn't find out that she has the infection until she gives birth to a child with syphilis.

Late tertiary stage: If syphilis is not found and treated in the early stages, it can cause other serious health problems. These can include blindness, problems with the nervous system and the heart, and mental disorders.

It can also cause death. How is syphilis diagnosed? How is it treated? How can you prevent syphilis? Cause Syphilis is caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum.

Transmission Transmission of the bacteria usually occurs during vaginal, anal, or oral sex. The syphilis bacteria are passed from person to person through direct contact with: The open sore chancre that appears during the primary stage. Mucous membrane or other sores during the secondary stage and sometimes during the latent stage.

Incubation period An incubation period is the time between exposure to a disease and the first symptom. Contagious period A person with syphilis can easily pass the infection is contagious to physically intimate partners when primary- or secondary-stage sores are present. Symptoms Syphilis develops in four stages, each with a different set of symptoms. Primary stage During the primary stage of syphilis, a sore chancre that is usually painless develops at the site where the bacteria entered the body.

In men, a chancre often appears in the genital area, usually but not always on the penis. These sores are often painless.

In women, chancres can develop on the outer genitals or on the inner part of the vagina. A chancre may go unnoticed if it occurs inside the vagina or at the opening to the uterus cervix.

The sores are usually painless and are not easily seen. Swelling of the lymph nodes may occur near the area of the chancre. A chancre may also occur in an area of the body other than the genitals. The chancre usually lasts for 3 to 6 weeks, heals without treatment, and may leave a thin scar. But even though the chancre has healed, syphilis is still present and a person can still pass the infection to others. Secondary stage Secondary syphilis is characterized by a rash that appears 2 to 12 weeks after the chancre develops and sometimes before it heals.

The rash usually consists of reddish brown, small, solid, flat or raised skin sores that are less than 2 cm 0. But the rash may look like other more common skin problems. Small, open sores may be present on mucous membranes.

The sores may contain pus. Or moist sores that look like warts called condyloma lata may be present. In dark-skinned people, the sores may be a lighter color than the surrounding skin.

When syphilis has spread throughout the body, the person may have: A fever. A sore throat. A vague feeling of weakness or discomfort throughout the body.

Weight loss. Patchy hair loss, especially in the eyebrows, eyelashes, and scalp hair. Swelling of the lymph nodes. Nervous system symptoms of secondary syphilis, which can include neck stiffness, headaches, irritability, paralysis, unequal reflexes, and irregular pupils.

Latent hidden stage If untreated, an infected person will progress to the latent hidden stage of syphilis. Relapses Some people with syphilis have a relapse of the infection during its latent stage.

Tertiary late stage This is the most destructive stage of syphilis. Complications of this stage include: Gummata, which are large sores inside the body or on the skin. Cardiovascular syphilis, which affects the heart and blood vessels. Neurosyphilis , which affects the nervous system. Congenital syphilis Congenital syphilis refers to syphilis passed from a mother to her baby during pregnancy or during labor and delivery.

Screening should be done: footnote 2 , footnote 1 At the first prenatal visit for all pregnant women.

At the beginning of the third trimester of pregnancy and again at delivery for women who are at high risk for syphilis. Symptoms of congenital syphilis include: A highly contagious watery discharge from the nose. Painful inflammation. Contagious rash that frequently appears over the palms of the hands and soles of the feet.

Reduced red blood cells in the blood anemia. Enlarged liver and spleen. Failure to grow and develop normally failure to thrive. What Happens About 3 weeks—although the range is from 10 to 90 days—after a person is infected with syphilis, a sore chancre that is usually painless often appears on the genitals. Complications of tertiary late syphilis include: Gummata, which are large sores inside the body or on the skin.

What Increases Your Risk Your risk of syphilis increases if you: Have unprotected sex do not use condoms or do not use them correctly. This risk is especially high among men who have sex with other men MSM. Have multiple sex partners, particularly if you live in an area of the country where syphilis is more common. Have a sex partner who has syphilis. Have sex with a partner who has multiple sex partners. Exchange sex for drugs or money. Have human immunodeficiency virus HIV infection and engage in any of the behaviors listed above.

When should you call your doctor? They can be contacted on 03 Listen to STI and syphilis information in various community languages on allgood. This page has been produced in consultation with and approved by:.

In Victoria, you can have two types of abortion: surgical and medication. Both types are safe and reliable. You can have a medication abortion up to nine weeks of pregnancy. You can have a surgical abortion from around six weeks of pregnancy onwards. Mifepristone, also called RU or the 'abortion pill', is used to terminate end a pregnancy up to nine weeks. Abortion is one of the most common and safest types of surgery in Australia.

Bisexuality is when a person finds men and women physically, sexually or emotionally attractive. A brain injury can change the way a person experiences and expresses their sexuality.

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Skip to main content. Sexually transmissible infections. Home Sexually transmissible infections. Actions for this page Listen Print. Summary Read the full fact sheet. On this page. Who is at risk of syphilis? How often should I get checked for syphilis? What are the symptoms of syphilis? What is congenital syphilis? How does syphilis spread? How is syphilis diagnosed? How is syphilis treated?

Can you get reinfected with syphilis? Letting partners know you have syphilis Reducing syphilis transmission Where to get help Resources In your language Videos — get tested for syphilis.