Clinical problem solving. A hand-carried diagnosis

Intrahepatic cholestasis due to Treponema pallidum in an immunocompetent patient

Hepatitis due to Treponema pallidum is a rare entity and its diagnosis represents a clinical challenge. Treponema pallidum should be considered as a presumptive etiology in all patients with acute liver disease, when other frequent causes have been ruled out. We present the case of a young, immunocompetent patient with elevated values in his liver tests, a cholestatic pattern, and maculopapular lesions on his palms and soles. Given his clinical picture, diagnostic tests, and response to the antimicrobial therapy, a diagnosis of cholestasis due to secondary syphilis has been established. It is important to include secondary syphilis within the possible causes of acute liver disease.

A Systematic Literature Review of Syphilitic Hepatitis in Adults

Syphilitic hepatitis in adults is not frequently found in the population and is easily misdiagnosed. The incidence of viral hepatitis is increasing year by year, concomitantly increasing the importance of obtaining a systematic understanding of the clinical features and treatment strategies for this disease. There is, however, a lack of published definitive data regarding the clinical characteristics, diagnosis and standard treatment options for this disease. Searches were made using the MEDLINE database of PubMed and OVID for syphilitic hepatitis publications from 1951 to 2017 in an attempt to analyze and summarize the clinical characteristics.

Syphilis and HIV prevalence and associated factors to their co-infection, hepatitis B and hepatitis C viruses prevalence among female sex workers in Rwanda

Background

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), syphilis, Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) are sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and share modes of transmission. These infections are generally more prevalent among female sex workers (FSWs).

Methods

This is a cross-sectional study conducted among female sex workers (FSWs) in Rwanda in 2015. Venue-Day-Time (VDT) sampling method was used in recruiting participants. HIV, syphilis, HBV, and HCV testing were performed. Descriptive analyses and logistic regression models were computed.

Results

In total, 1978 FSWs were recruited. The majority (58.5%) was aged between 20 and 29 years old. Up to 63.9% of FSWs were single, 62.3% attained primary school, and 68.0% had no additional occupation beside sex work. Almost all FSWs (81.2%) had children. The majority of FSWs (68.4%) were venue-based, and most (53.5%) had spent less than five years in sex work. The overall prevalence of syphilis was 51.1%; it was 2.5% for HBV, 1.4% for HCV, 42.9% for HIV and 27.4% for syphilis/HIV co-infection. The prevalence of syphilis, HIV, and syphilis + HIV co-infection was increasing with age and decreasing with the level of education. A positive association with syphilis/HIV co-infection was found in: 25 years and older (aOR = 1.82 [95% CI:1.33–2.50]), having had a genital sore in the last 12 months (aOR = 1.34 [95% CI:1.05–1.71]), and having HBsAg-positive test (aOR = 2.09 [1.08–4.08]).

Conclusion

The prevalence of HIV and syphilis infections and HIV/syphilis co-infection are very high among FSWs in Rwanda. A strong, specific prevention program for FSWs and to avert HIV infection and other STIs transmission to their clients is needed.

Syphilis: the renaissance of an old disease with oral implications

Syphilis is caused by Treponema pallidum an anaerobic filamentous spirochete. In recent years, striking outbreaks have occurred in USA, Canada, Russia, China and some areas of Central and Eastern Europe. Main epidemiology changes reflect sex industry, sexual promiscuity, decreasing use of barrier protection (i.e. condoms) due to false sense of security that nowadays sexually transmitted diseases are curable and lack of pertinent knowledge. Considering that the initial presentation of syphilis may be the oral cavity, it is of great relevance to include this disease in the differential diagnosis of unusual oral ulcerations and white patches. Primary syphilis is a highly infectious disease in which inappropriate treatment may be apparently curative while the patient remains highly infectious. It is then of pivotal importance that clinicians maintain a high clinical index of suspicion. At the present time, clinical-pathologic correlation together with serologic studies remain essential in establishing the diagnosis of syphilis.

Against diagnosis

The act of diagnosis requires that patients be placed in a binary category of either having or not having a certain disease. Accordingly, the diseases of particular concern for industrialized countries--such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, or depression--require that a somewhat arbitrary cut-point be chosen on a continuous scale of measurement (for example, a fasting glucose level >6.9 mmol/L [>125 mg/dL] for type 2 diabetes). These cut-points do not adequately reflect disease biology, may inappropriately treat patients on either side of the cut-point as 2 homogenous risk groups, fail to incorporate other risk factors, and are invariable to patient preference. This article discusses risk prediction as an alternative to diagnosis: Patient risk factors (blood pressure, age) are combined into a single statistical model (risk for a cardiovascular event within 10 years) and the results are used in shared decision making about possible treatments. The authors compare and contrast the diagnostic and risk prediction approaches and attempt to identify the types of medical problem to which each is best suited.