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All you need to know about Syphilis

Patients with syphilis can present with different symptoms depending on the disease staging. But most people diagnosed with syphilis have no symptoms; they’re diagnosed based on a blood test.

Doctors think of syphilis as having two stages: early and late.

Early syphilis

As the name suggests, syphilis is referred to as early stage within weeks to months after the patient contracts it. Doctors separate it further into these categories:

  • Primary
  • Secondary
  • Latent

Late syphilis

If syphilis is untreated for longer than a year, it can progress to late-stage syphilis, which can cause serious complications. It can take from 1 year to 30 years for complications involving vital organs, including the heart, brain, to occur.

introduction

Introduction

The primary practical reason for knowing the stage is that it determines the duration of treatment: one shot versus three or more, depending on the complications.


The information on this page should help you think and see like a doctor does. It is not a replacement for a doctor visit or testing. We’ve separated this page into sections to make it easier for you to go straight to the part you need based on the disease stage you’re in.


Each section begins with tables that provide an overview of important facts. They are followed by frequently asked questions answered by our expert STD doctor (“Dr. F”).


Let’s get started.