Markethealthbeauty.com | Congenital Syphilis: Symptoms, and Effects – STDs such as syphilis or lion king are usually very susceptible to occur in people who do not have se**x safely or have multiple partners. Although it is experienced by many older persons, in fact, this infectious disease may occur in infants.
In fact, the child can already be infected since he is still in the womb. This happens because the mother has syphilis to transmit to her fetus. This condition is called congenital syphilis.
Congenital syphilis is a serious infection that can have a lifelong and deadly disability impact on newborns. Pregnant women infected with Treponema pallidum can transmit the bacteria to the fetus through the placenta into the fetus.
Congenital syphilis is a condition in which a pregnant woman experiences syphilis, but is not treated during pregnancy so syphilis will be passed on to the baby through the placenta. This ultimately causes the baby to become infected with syphilis during childbirth.
The greatest risk of infecting a baby is when the mother is in the early stages of syphilis. But transmission of infection through the placenta can still occur at any time during pregnancy.
Therefore, it is very important for women (at risk) who are pregnant to conduct laboratory tests to detect syphilis. The risk of the baby getting syphilis is significantly reduced if the mother receives treatment during pregnancy. If the mother is treated before the 16th week of pregnancy, the baby will usually not be infected with syphilis.
Congenital Syphilis Symptoms
Symptoms that can be found in newborns:
- Fussy
- Fever
- His weight did not increase or failed to develop
- Flat nose (saddle nose)
- Rashes on the mouth, genitals and anus
- Small blisters (vesicles) on the palms and soles of the feet
- Copper-colored maculopapular rash on the face, palms, soles of the feet
- Discharge of slimy fluid or mixed with blood from the nose
- Enlargement of the lymph nodes, liver and spleen
- His face looks like an old man
- His lips are cracked
- From his nose comes out bloody mucus
- Inflammation of the membranes of the brain and eyes
- Seizures
- Hydrocephalus (enlargement of the brain cavity containing fluids due to increased pressure in the brain).
Symptoms in larger infants and children:
- Bone pain
- Won’t move because his legs and arms hurt
- Abnormalities in the shins (saber shins)
- Swelling of the joints
- Hutchinson teeth (freckles on teeth and shaped like wedges)
- The formation of scar tissue on wounds in the mouth, genitals and anus (called ragade)
- Mental retardation
- Visual impairment
- Cloudy cornea
- Hearing loss or deafness
- Gray patches such as mucus in the anus and vulva (called condyloma lata).
Many children with congenital syphilis remain at the latent stage and never show symptoms. In some children there will eventually be symptoms such as:
- Open wounds inside the nose and on the palate
- Button-like lumps on the leg bones and skull bones
- Deaf and blind
- Hutchinson’s teeth
Congenital syphilis effects
Congenital syphilis can cause a variety of complications in both the fetus and the baby. Abor**tion (miscarriage) can occur while the fetus is still in the womb. Babies can be born prematurely, or die at birth.
If the baby is successfully born safely, it can be born with congenital defects. For example osteitis (inflammation of the bones), and deafness, etc. The organs of the affected baby can be various: heart, lungs, gastrointestinal tract, kidneys, pancreas, bone structure.
Congenital syphilis can also affect the baby’s physique. Characteristic of the teeth, the front teeth are wavy. Or mulberry molar, which is a bulge in the molars a lot. Another feature, the child’s nose is very pug. There is no nose bar, only nose cups.
It is possible that fetal brain growth and development are impaired. If bacteria enter the fetus a lot, it could be affected by organ disorders, including the brain. It can be a mental retardation, or the brain doesn’t grow perfectly.
Source:
- Image: See page for author, CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Video: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health – Mid-Atlantic Public Health Training Center