How long can you leave syphilis untreated?

If untreated, an infected person will progress to the latent (hidden) stage of syphilis. After the secondary-stage rash goes away, the person will not have any symptoms for a time (latent period). The latent period may be as brief as 1 year or range from 5 to 20 years.


How long can you live with untreated syphilis?

Tertiary Stage

Tertiary syphilis is very serious and would occur 10–30 years after your infection began. In tertiary syphilis, the disease damages your internal organs and can result in death.

What happens to the body if syphilis is left untreated?

About 15% to 30% of people infected with syphilis who don't get treatment will develop complications known as tertiary syphilis. In the late stage, the disease may damage the brain, nerves, eyes, heart, blood vessels, liver, bones and joints. These problems may occur many years after the original, untreated infection.


How long can you have syphilis before it causes damage?

But the damage that late stage syphilis has already caused can't be changed or healed. The complications from late stage syphilis can happen 10-20 years after you first get infected.

Can you live with syphilis without knowing?

Latent Stage

The latent (hidden) stage of syphilis is a period when there are no visible signs or symptoms of syphilis. Without treatment, syphilis will remain in the body even though there are no signs or symptoms. Early latent syphilis is latent syphilis where infection occurs within the past 12 months.


Do you have Syphilis? - Symptoms, Tips and Treatment - Doctor Explains



How long is too long for syphilis?

Without treatment you will still have syphilis for 20 years or more even though you will not have any signs or symptoms. People with latent syphilis may sometimes have symptoms (flare-ups) like skin rash, fever, a sore throat, swollen glands or feeling weak and tired.

Can late syphilis be cured?

CDC recommends three doses of long-acting Benzathine penicillin G at weekly intervals for late latent syphilis or latent syphilis of unknown duration. Treatment will cure the infection and prevent further damage, but it will not repair damage already done.

Can the body fight off syphilis?

Shuffling of DNA in a single gene might be why the syphilis bacteria can evade the immune system. The change alters a protein on its cell surface to create a distraction. People can become re-infected several times with syphilis because they can't develop immunity, Untreated syphilis can hide in the body for decades.


What are the 5 stages of syphilis?

Stages of Syphilis
  • Primary stage. During the primary stage, a sore ( chancre) that is usually painless develops at the site where the bacteria entered the body. ...
  • Secondary stage. ...
  • Latent (hidden) stage. ...
  • Relapses of secondary syphilis. ...
  • Tertiary (late) stage.


What are the signs of syphilis in a man?

Primary Syphilis

You might notice that the lymph nodes near your groin are enlarged. Typically, the first visible sign of syphilis is a small, painless sore (doctors call it a “chancre”) on the skin (you may develop several sores). It normally appears at the spot where the bacteria entered your body.

What are the 4 symptoms of syphilis?

Symptoms
  • Skin rash, usually on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet.
  • Sores called mucous patches in or around the mouth, vagina, or penis.
  • Moist, warty patches (called condylomata lata) in the genitals or skin folds.
  • Fever.
  • General ill feeling.
  • Loss of appetite.
  • Muscle and joint pain.
  • Swollen lymph nodes.


Can Stage 4 syphilis be cured?

The secondary stage of syphilis is curable with medical treatment. It's important to get treatment to prevent the disease progressing to the tertiary stage, which may not be curable. It can cause damage to your organs, as well as dementia, paralysis, or even death.

Is syphilis easy to cure if caught early?

When diagnosed and treated in its early stages, syphilis is easy to cure. The preferred treatment at all stages is penicillin, an antibiotic medication that can kill the organism that causes syphilis. If you're allergic to penicillin, your doctor may suggest another antibiotic or recommend penicillin desensitization.

Will I always test positive for syphilis?

Note: After successful treatment, a positive nontreponemal test usually becomes negative, whereas the treponemal test usually remains positive for life. *Note: Nontreponemal testing may have a false-negative result during primary syphilis in the very early stages or tertiary syphilis in the very late stages.


How long are the stages of syphilis?

How long do the stages of syphilis last? Primary syphilis typically occurs 10-90 days after exposure, and usually moves to stage two within 3-6 weeks after chancres heal. Secondary syphilis may happen immediately, or may happen weeks or months later. Symptoms typically resolve within 4-6 weeks.

Can syphilis show up 20 years later?

This latent stage can last for years. The late stages of syphilis can develop in about 15% of people who have not been treated for syphilis, Page 2 and can appear 10-20 years after infection was first acquired.

How urgent is syphilis treatment?

Syphilis is easily cured in the early stages. But if you don't treat syphilis early on, it can get worse and do serious harm to your body in the future. Late stage syphilis can lead to health problems that can't be reversed or healed, like blindness or paralysis. Syphilis can also cause problems if you're pregnant.


What is considered early syphilis?

One stage -- latent syphilis -- doesn't have symptoms. Painless sores appear at the site of infection (mouth, anus, rectum, vagina, or penis). These are called chancres. The sores heal on their own after 3 to 6 weeks, but you can still spread syphilis.

Is syphilis itchy?

A syphilis rash doesn't usually itch. People may mistake a syphilis rash for psoriasis, eczema or pityriasis rosea if they don't realize they have syphilis. While the rash often appears on the hands or feet, it can also appear on the torso, trunk or extremities.

What are the symptoms of stage 3 syphilis?

Signs and symptoms of late stage tertiary syphilis include:
  • difficulty coordinating muscle movements.
  • paralysis.
  • numbness.
  • gradual blindness.
  • dementia.


What can be mistaken for syphilis?

The differential diagnosis of nodular syphilis includes systemic mycosis, Kaposi's sarcoma, bacillary angiomatosis, foreign body granuloma type, lymphoma, pseudolymphoma, leprosy, sarcoidosis, and halogenoderma. Secondary syphilis with pustular lesions can also lead to the erroneous diagnosis of pustular acne [8, 9].

What are the worst symptoms of syphilis?

Syphilis can cause problems like headaches, meningitis, brain damage, paralysis, or hearing and vision loss. Cardiovascular problems. The disease can damage your heart valves or cause bulging blood vessels (aneurysms) or an inflamed aorta (aortitis).

Where does syphilis usually show up?

The genitals are the most common location for chancres to develop, but these ulcers also can form around the mouth or anus. The chancre is firm and painless, and it oozes fluid that contains syphilis bacteria.


How do I know if I had syphilis?

During the primary stage of syphilis, you may have one or more painless sores on the genitals or in the mouth, anus, or rectum. The name for this type of sore is a chancre (SHANK er). The sore is likely to be wherever you had sex. If you had oral sex, it might be in your mouth or on your genitals.

Can you get kissing from syphilis?

Syphilis: This is a bacterial infection that can be spread by having sex. It isn't usually spread by kissing — unless you and your partner both have syphilis sores present in your mouth when you kiss.