An Emergency Department Presentation of Secondary Syphilis.

An Emergency Department Presentation of Secondary Syphilis. Mil Med. 2018 Mar 14;: Authors: Sarkisian SA, Brillhart D Abstract In the United States, the rate of primary and secondary syphilis has increased by 18% in 2016, the highest rate since 1993. These patients can often present to the emergency department (ED) in various stages. Although syphilis is well described in the literature, there is a paucity of ED reports of atypical cases. A 22-yr-old male presented to the ED complaining of neck pain. The patient was found to have right-sided tender cervical lymphadenopathy causing neck pain. A thorough physical exam revealed diffuse lymphadenopathy. Without an obvious infectious etiology, the patient underwent a broad workup, which revealed a reactive rapid plasma reagin (RPR) assay with a titer of 1:64. The patient had no history of the classic painless penile ulcer. The ED presentation of secondary syphilis can be very insidious, and physicians should be aware of its various presentations. PMID: 29547908 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: Military Medicine - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: Mil Med Source Type: research