Search Our Scientific Publications & Authors

Asian J Psychiatr 2019 Feb 13;40:103-106. Epub 2019 Feb 13.

Department of Neurology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India. Electronic address:

Syphilis is described often as great imitator due to its varied clinical manifestations. Neurosyphilis a tertiary form of syphilis can present in the form of meningitis, meningovascular syphilis with strokes and in advanced stage as general paralysis of insane. Paretic stage of neurosyphilis presents with progressive psychiatric and cognitive impairment. Read More

Enferm Infecc Microbiol Clin 2019 Feb 6. Epub 2019 Feb 6.

Servicio de Microbiología, Hospital Universitario de Cabueñes, Gijón, Asturias, España; Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA), Oviedo, Asturias, España; Grupo de Estudio de ITS de la SEIMC (GEITS), Madrid, España.

Syphilis is an infectious disease caused by the spirochaete Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum which is transmitted by sexual contact or vertical transmission during pregnancy. The incidence of syphilis has increased in the last years, mainly among men who have sex with men. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2018 Dec 27;11(1). Epub 2018 Dec 27.

Department of Medicine, California Pacific Medical Center, San Francisco, California, USA.

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease that can affect multiple organ systems, with central nervous system involvement at any stage. We present a 53-year-old woman with an unusual truncal rash with painful anogenital lesions, accompanied by patchy alopecia, oral lesions, photophobia and hoarseness. She was found to have positive serological tests for syphilis with cerebrospinal fluid findings suggestive of neurosyphilis. Read More

Laryngoscope 2018 Dec 28. Epub 2018 Dec 28.

Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Harborview Medical Center, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.

Objectives: To describe the clinical characteristics of patients presenting with a new diagnosis of otosyphilis over the past 10 years in a large, urban, safety-net hospital affiliated with a large county sexually transmitted disease clinic.

Methods: Retrospective case series. A chart review was performed of all patients who presented to an adult otolaryngology clinic with a new diagnosis of syphilis and hearing loss from January 2008 to December 2017. Read More

Neurologist 2019 Jan;24(1):29-32

Department of Neurology, Health Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.

Introduction: Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction (JHR) is defined as a transient immunologic reaction, classically seen in patients during syphilis treatment. JHR is a rare cause of status epilepticus (SE) in neurosyphilis. We describe a case of generalized convulsive SE (GCSE) probably secondary to JHR in a patient with neurosyphilis. Read More

AIDS Res Ther 2018 Dec 21;15(1):28. Epub 2018 Dec 21.

Melbourne Sexual Health Centre, Alfred Health, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.

Patients who are HIV-positive and co-infected with other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are at risk of increased morbidity and mortality. This is of clinical significance. There has been a dramatic increase in the incidence of STIs, particularly syphilis, gonorrhoea, Mycoplasma genitalium and hepatitis C virus (HCV) in HIV-positive patients. Read More

Am J Med 2018 Dec 18. Epub 2018 Dec 18.

Oregon Health and Science University, Department of Dermatology, Portland, Ore. Electronic address:

Arq Neuropsiquiatr 2018 Nov;76(11):791-794

Universidade Federal do Paraná, Hospital de Clínicas, Serviço de Neurologia, Departamento de Clínica Médica, Curitiba PR, Brasil.

Objective: Throughout history, neurosyphilis has victimized many people, including classical composers, with a wide range of clinical presentations. Six articles with descriptions of composers with possible neurosyphilis were reviewed.

Methods: Neurosyphilis is a possible diagnosis for composers like Beethoven, whose progressive hearing loss influenced his career, culminating in complete deafness. Read More

Neurol Clin Pract 2018 Oct;8(5):379-388

Departments of Neurology (DI, RE, KM, Sucipto, DO, DNL), Microbiology (DCL, A. Karuniawati), Radiology (REY, RM), Internal Medicine (EY, THK), Clinical Pathology (IST, DW), and Parasitology (RW, RA, A. Kurniawan), Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital-Faculty of Medicine Universitas Indonesia; Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology (UAJ, DS, KSAM); Eijkman-Oxford Clinical Research Unit (UAJ), Jakarta, Indonesia; Department of Internal Medicine and Radboud Center for Infectious Diseases (AvL, RvC), Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; TB/HIV Research Center (BA, SD, LC, ARG), Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, Indonesia; and Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health (RvC), Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, UK.

Background: Little detailed knowledge is available regarding the etiology and outcome of CNS infection, particularly in HIV-infected individuals, in low-resource settings.

Methods: From January 2015 to April 2016, we prospectively included all adults with suspected CNS infection in a referral hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia. Systematic screening included HIV testing, CSF examination, and neuroimaging. Read More

J Infect Chemother 2018 Dec 8. Epub 2018 Dec 8.

Division of Neurology, Sendai City Hospital, 1-1-1 Asutonagamachi, Taihaku-ku, Sendai 982-8502, Miyagi, Japan.

Early neurosyphilis commonly appears in basilar meninges, and its meningeal inflammation can spread to neighboring cranial nerves, resulting in some cranial nerve palsies. Herein, we report a case of a 51-year-old man who presented with right peripheral facial nerve palsy. His symptoms completely disappeared with prednisolone monotherapy without antibiotics use and were not exacerbated during clinical treatment. Read More

Epileptic Disord 2018 Dec;20(6):562

Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of medicine, Medical University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland.

Curr Opin Neurol 2019 Feb;32(1):43-48

Serviço de Neurologia, Hospital das Clínicas da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais/EBSERH.

Purpose Of Review: To address the important relationships between stroke and infection, focusing on the most frequent infections found in low-income and middle-income countries.

Recent Findings: Stroke is one of the leading causes of mortality and disability worldwide, with a great proportion of the stroke burden occurring in low-income and middle-income countries. Infectious diseases are still a great health problem in developing countries and it is possible that the proportion of infection-related strokes is greater in these nations. Read More

Adv Neonatal Care 2018 Dec;18(6):446-450

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Rady Children's Hospital, San Diego, California.

Background: There is a global rise in maternal syphilis and infants born with congenital syphilis.

Clinical Findings: This case report presents a 32-week gestation premature male infant with initial clinical findings significant for respiratory failure as well as blueberry muffin spot rash and hepatosplenomegaly, which are consistent with congenital syphilis.

Primary Diagnosis: This case study is unique in that the diagnosis of congenital neurosyphilis was demonstrated despite negative maternal serology because of the prozone phenomenon. Read More

Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova 2018 ;118(10):19-24

Moscow Regional Clinical Skin and Venereal Diseases Clinic, Moscow, Russia.

Aim: The problem of detection and diagnosis of late forms of neurosyphilis remains relevant and to a large extent concerns the field of psychiatry. The autors study of professional activity of psychiatric hospital in this field with use of clinical and statistical data.

Material And Methods: The article presents modern statistical data on the detection of these forms of syphilis in psychiatric hospitals of the Moscow region in comparison with the indicators of 2008-2010. Read More

Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova 2018 ;118(10):14-18

Irkutsk State Medical Academy of Continuing Education, Irkutsk, Russia; Irkutsk regional dermatovenereologic dispanser, Irkutsk, Russia.

Aim: To study and compare the frequency and types of clinical course of different forms of early neurosyphilis (NS) in patients with HIV infection.

Material And Methods: The results of clinical, laboratory and neuropsychological examinations of two groups of patients: with early NS in combination with HIV infection (n=62) and with early NS without HIV (n=62) were analyzed.

Results And Conclusion: The variants (regressive, stationary, slowly progressive, rapidly progressive) and types (favorable, unfavorable) of clinical course of different forms of early NS were identified in these groups. Read More

Medicine (Baltimore) 2018 Nov;97(45):e13171

Department of Dermatology.

Resolution of clinical symptoms and at least 4-fold decline in nontreponemal antibody titers after treatment of syphilis is regarded as "proof of cure." However, a substantial proportion of patients demonstrates <4-fold reduction of titers after recommended therapy (serofast state). It remains unclear whether the serofast state is indicative of persistence of bacteria or only a residual immune response. Read More

HIV Med 2019 Jan 7;20(1):27-32. Epub 2018 Nov 7.

Department of Internal Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.

Objectives: People living with HIV (PLWH) are at increased risk of asymptomatic neurosyphilis; thus, it has been common practice to perform a lumbar puncture (LP) in all PLWH presenting with syphilis regardless of stage, signs or symptoms. However, this practice varies widely among clinicians. Our objective was to elucidate the number of LPs required to diagnose a single case of asymptomatic neurosyphilis. Read More

Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 2019 Jan 27;38(1):125-134. Epub 2018 Oct 27.

Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Medeniyet University, Goztepe Training and Research Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey.

Neurosyphilis (NS) has different clinical manifestations and can appear during any stage of syphilis. We aimed to identify the factors affecting poor outcome in NS patients. Patients with positive cerebrospinal fluid Venereal Disease Research Laboratory test, and positive serological serum treponemal or nontreponemal tests were classified as definite NS. Read More

Neurol Clin 2018 Nov;36(4):687-703

Department of Neurology, UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, 675 Nelson Rising Lane, NS212A, Campus Box 3206, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA. Electronic address:

Neuroinfectious diseases continue to cause morbidity and mortality worldwide, with many emerging or reemerging infections resulting in neurologic sequelae. Careful clinical evaluation coupled with appropriate laboratory investigations still forms the bedrock for making the correct etiologic diagnosis and implementing appropriate management. The treating physician needs to understand the individual test characteristics of each of the many conventional candidate-based diagnostics: culture, pathogen-specific polymerase chain reaction, antigen, antibody tests, used to diagnose the whole array of neuroinvasive infections. Read More

Cien Saude Colet 2018 Oct;23(10):3421-3431

Centro de Educação de Ciências Humanas, Departamento de Psicologia, Universidade Federal de Sergipe. Av. Marechal Rondon s/n, Jardim Rosa Elze. 49100-000 São Cristóvão SE Brasil.

At age 44, after suffering a breakdown in Turin, philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche was diagnosed with neurosyphilis. There was no necropsy on his body, so this medical diagnosis has been questioned over the time. We conducted a literature review on the medical diagnosis of Nietzsche, which emphasizes three genres of pathographies that emerged successively as alternatives explanations for Nietzsche's breakdown in Turin: (1) narratives about syphilis ("demoniac-pathological"); (2) narratives about functional psychosis ("heroic-prophetic"); (3) other narratives about organic diseases, other than syphilis ("scientific-realistic"). Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2018 Oct 21;2018. Epub 2018 Oct 21.

Department of General Internal Medicine, Osaka University Hospital, Suita, Japan.

Aging Clin Exp Res 2018 Oct 20. Epub 2018 Oct 20.

Department of Medicine III, Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Norte, Hospital Pulido Valente, Lisbon, Portugal.

Introduction: Syphilis is a systemic human disease which is caused by infection with the spirochete Treponema pallidum. It is spread worldwide, and there has recently been an increase in its incidence. Neurosyphilis (NS) can have a variety of presentations; meningovascular NS is a specific affection of the Treponema which occurs in an early stage after the primary infection, causing an inflammatory arteriopathy which may result in an ischemic stroke. Read More

Eur Neurol 2018 19;80(1-2):82-86. Epub 2018 Oct 19.

Zhongshan Hospital, Medical College of Xiamen University, Xiamen,

Background: The differential diagnosis of general paresis (GP) and non-neurosyphilis (NS) dementia is not clearly defined. The present study examined the differences in clinical and laboratory features of GP and non-NS dementia.

Materials And Methods: We retrospectively examined clinical and laboratory features of 85 GP patients and 196 non-NS dementia patients. Read More

Front Neurol Neurosci 2018 18;43:76-84. Epub 2018 Oct 18.

Thomas Mann (1875-1955) is considered one of the most influential writers of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. In addition to his novels and essays, he was well known for his criticisms of the Nazi party, and particularly against the racial nationalism promoted by Adolf Hitler after the First World War, as well as for his depiction of diseases. Here, we provide a quick sketch of Mann's life and his relationship with nineteenth to twentieth century German society. Read More

Front Neurol Neurosci 2018 18;43:59-75. Epub 2018 Oct 18.

Édouard Manet (1832-1883) is considered the "father" of impressionism and even of twentieth century modern art. Manet's genius involved getting away from the classical narrative or historical topics and replacing them by the banality of daily life. Technically, he erased volumes into flat two-dimensional coloured planes, and distorted conventional perspective with often gross brushstrokes intentionally giving an "unfinished" aspect to the work. Read More

Acta Ophthalmol 2018 Oct 17. Epub 2018 Oct 17.

Division of Ophthalmology, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.

Purpose: Ocular manifestations of syphilis have been reported in 2-10% of systemic infection. The purpose of this study was to report the incidence of ocular syphilis and various ocular manifestations, particularly optic nerve involvement, in newly diagnosed cases.

Methods: This was a retrospective study. Read More

Continuum (Minneap Minn) 2018 Oct;24(5, Neuroinfectious Disease):1439-1458

Purpose Of Review: This article presents an overview of the current diagnosis and management of two spirochetal infections of the nervous system, neuroborreliosis (Lyme disease) and neurosyphilis, focusing on similarities and differences. Although neuroborreliosis was first identified almost a century ago, much confusion remains about how to accurately diagnose this quite treatable nervous system infection. Well-established diagnostic tools and therapeutic regimens exist for neurosyphilis, which has been well-known for centuries. Read More

Cureus 2018 Jul 22;10(7):e3020. Epub 2018 Jul 22.

Surgery Student, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine, Lewisburg , USA.

The number of cases of late and late latent syphilis in the United States is on the rise. This diagnosis is often forgotten when an elderly patient is being worked up for altered mental status. Rarely does a 70-year-old male with neurosyphilis present simply with anxiety. Read More

Int J STD AIDS 2019 Feb 26;30(2):194-197. Epub 2018 Sep 26.

1 Brain Research Laboratory, Department of Neurology, Ziv Medical Center, Safed, Israel.

A previously healthy 35-year-old man suffering from behavioral and mental deterioration for three months was referred to our facility. On admission, the patient was dysphasic and had tonic-clonic seizures. Neurological examination showed mental confusion, euphoric mood, mania, paranoia, and mild motor dysphasia. Read More

J Infect Chemother 2019 Mar 21;25(3):208-211. Epub 2018 Sep 21.

Department of Neurosurgery, Osaka Police Hospital, Osaka, Japan.

We present a unique case of symptomatic early neurosyphilis in a non-HIV-infected patient. A 47-year-old man with a history of diabetes mellitus presented with generalized seizures. He did not manifest any neurological deficits. Read More

Sex Transm Dis 2019 Jan;46(1):41-46

School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.

Background: Early diagnosis of Treponema pallidum infection is helpful for disease management, and conventional PCR is suitable for lesion swabs of patients with probable early syphilis. We thus tested nested and real-time PCR (NR-PCR) in various biosamples from syphilitic patients.

Methods: Samples were collected from syphilis patients before treatment. Read More

Cureus 2018 Jul 16;10(7):e2984. Epub 2018 Jul 16.

Emergency Medicine, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, USA.

Neurosyphilis is a dangerous and increasingly more prevalent sexually transmitted infection of the central nervous system caused by the bacterium that can present during the advanced stages of the disease (tertiary syphilis). Health care providers must remain vigilant in screening for syphilis in patients with high-risk behaviors as a delay in diagnosis and treatment may lead to symptom progression and debilitating sequelae years later. To date, there have been no published simulation case studies on neurosyphilis. Read More

Ocul Immunol Inflamm 2018 Sep 19:1-5. Epub 2018 Sep 19.

a Department of Ophthalmology , Groote Schuur Hospital , Cape Town , South Africa.

Purpose: To review the clinical manifestations, cerebrospinal fluid findings and outcomes of patients diagnosed with ocular syphilis.

Methods: Retrospective case review of all patients treated with ocular syphilis at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa between January 2008 and January 2013.

Results: A total of 77 eyes of 49 patients were included. Read More

Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd 2018 08 30;162. Epub 2018 Aug 30.

Erasmus MC, afd. Oogheelkunde, Rotterdam.

A 29-year-old male presented at the ER with a red and painful left eye with sudden and progressive loss of vision within a week. His visual acuity was 1/60. Slit lamp investigation showed inflammatory cells throughout the anterior chamber and vitreous body, and a hyperaemic and swollen optic disc with retinal lesions, indicating a panuveitis combined with multifocal chorioretinitis. Read More

Intern Med J 2018 08;48(8):992-995

Department of Infectious Diseases, Royal Darwin Hospital, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.

This case report presents the clinical record of a 37-year-old man who presented with a dense right hemiplegia, found to be caused by a left medial medullary stroke. The cause of the stroke was unclear, and bacterial endocarditis was initially suspected. However, he was ultimately found to have neurosyphilis on a background of undiagnosed human immunodeficiency virus and was treated with benzylpenicillin. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2018 Aug 20;2018. Epub 2018 Aug 20.

Orthopaedic Surgery Department, Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra EPE, Coimbra, Portugal.

The Charcot joint or neuropathic osteoarthropathy was first described as an arthritic sequela of neurosyphilis (tabes dorsalis). It results in significant joint destruction and instability. Nowadays, it is a very rare condition and represents a considerable challenge to the orthopaedic surgeon. Read More

Medicina (B Aires) 2018;78(4):286-289

Sexta Cátedra de Medicina Interna, Hospital de Clínicas José de San Martín, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) is a disorder characterized by motor symptoms such as weakness in both proximal and distal muscles with globally diminished or absent reflexes. Insulin neuritis is referred as an acute pain in the extremities, due to the damage of peripheral nerves affecting mainly small fibers, in diabetic patients treated with insulin who achieved rapid glycemic control. Pain is unusual in classic CIDP. Read More

Sex Transm Dis 2018 Sep;45(9S Suppl 1):S10-S12

Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.

Despite over a century of clinical experience in diagnosing and managing patients with syphilis, many thorny clinical questions remain unanswered. We focus on several areas of uncertainty for the clinician: the role of serologic tests in diagnosing syphilis and assessing syphilis treatment responses, and the risk of neurosyphilis and ocular syphilis in patients with syphilis. We also address whether clinical approaches should differ in patients who are, and are not, infected with HIV. Read More

AIDS 2019 Jan;33(1):77-81

Department of Infectious and Parasitic Diseases, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Sao Paulo.

Background: Although doxycycline is widely used as an alternative to benzathine penicillin for the treatment of early and late latent syphilis, data on serological response following treatment with doxycycline among HIV-infected patients are limited.

Methods: In this study, we analysed serological response to syphilis treatment with doxycycline among HIV-infected patients treated during a benzathine penicillin shortage period and compared with treatment response among patients treated with benzathine penicillin. Cases with neurosyphilis and those treated with suboptimal doses or with concurrent medications in association with benzathine penicillin or doxycycline were excluded. Read More

Int J Rehabil Res 2018 Dec;41(4):358-363

Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation and Social Integration, Laval University.

This study aimed to investigate (i) the validity of self-reported scores of locomotion ability in stroke survivors using the ABILOCO-Benin questionnaire, and (ii) the congruence between online Rasch analysis of the ABILOCO-Benin raw scores and a conversion table set along with the questionnaire development. Thirty-five adult poststroke patients [mean age: 52 (SD: 10) years, 60% men] recruited from the rehabilitation department of National University Hospital of Cotonou (Benin), self-reported their locomotion ability, filling out the ABILOCO-Benin questionnaire [self-reported scores (SRS)]. Afterwards, a physical therapist observed and rated the patients' locomotion ability, while they performed each of the 15 items of the questionnaire [performance-based scores (PBS)]. Read More

IDCases 2018 12;13:e00426. Epub 2018 Jul 12.

Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, Maimonides Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA.

The incidence of new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections is declining and is half of what it was in the mid 1990s. We present a case of newly diagnosed HIV with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), Neurosyphilis, Kaposi Sarcoma, and multiple opportunistic infections. Although this type of patient was not uncommon in the pre-antiretroviral era, we do not often see such a constellation of conditions in a single individual. Read More

Int J Infect Dis 2018 Nov 3;76:1-3. Epub 2018 Aug 3.

Department for Functional Genomics, Center for Translational and Clinical Research, University of Zagreb School of Medicine, University Hospital Center Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia; University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia.

This report describes a case of neurosyphilis presenting with memory disturbances, attention deficit, and acute psychotic decompensation in an immunocompetent man. Despite the known connection of neurosyphilis with psychiatric symptoms, this cause often remains unrecognized. This report emphasizes the importance of maintaining a suspicion for the disease in patients with vague symptoms and describes the diagnostic difficulties. Read More

Rinsho Shinkeigaku 2018 Aug 31;58(8):499-504. Epub 2018 Jul 31.

Division of Neurology, Department of Internal Medicine.

A 51-year-old man with a cerebral lacunar infarction of the midbrain that had occurred two years before, was transferred from a regional psychiatric hospital with chronic progressive psychiatric symptoms including cognitive decline, irritability and hallucinations. Neurological examinations upon admission revealed cerebellar ataxia including dysarthria, ataxic gait and bilateral intention tremor. Brain FLAIR MRI on day 2 revealed abnormal hyperintense lesions in the bilateral insular cortex and temporal pole. Read More

Sex Transm Infect 2018 12 30;94(8):585-588. Epub 2018 Jul 30.

Clinical Research Department, Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.

Introduction: Syphilis continues to be a major public health problem and the recent resurgence in syphilis in high-income settings has seen an accompanying increase in cases of neurosyphilis. While the introduction of PCR has had a significant impact on the diagnosis of early syphilis, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) serological assays remain the most commonly used tests to diagnosis neurosyphilis. We reviewed data on the performance of CSF-PCR for the diagnosis of neurosyphilis. Read More

Medicine (Baltimore) 2018 Jul;97(30):e11661

Department of Neurology and Neuroscience Center, First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun.

Rationale: We report a rare case of syphilitic meningomyelitis presenting with visceral crisis and possessing characteristic imaging findings.

Patient Concerns: The patient, a 50-year-old woman, complained of pain in the upper abdomen and back. She then developed numbness in both lower extremities and weakness in the left lower limb. Read More

Sex Transm Dis 2019 Jan;46(1):37-40

From the Division of STD Prevention, National Center for HIV, Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta GA.

Background: Before penicillin, the syphilis case-fatality rate was 10% within 40 years. Late complications, such as cardiovascular syphilis, were still common in the 1950s but now seem quite rare even though some infections likely go undetected. We studied trends in syphilis mortality as an indicator of trends in severe complications of syphilis. Read More

Neurohospitalist 2018 Jul 22;8(3):156-157. Epub 2017 Jun 22.

Department of Neurology, Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA.

Rev Soc Bras Med Trop 2018 May-Jun;51(3):404

Departamento de Radiologia, Hospital Universitário Clementino Fraga Filho, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.

Arq Neuropsiquiatr 2018 Jun;76(6):373-380

Universidade Federal do Paraná, Hospital de Clínicas, Departamento de Medicina Interna, Serviço de Neurologia, Curitiba PR, Brasil.

Background: During the first decade of this century, a significant increase in the incidence of syphilis was documented.

Objective: To study clinical and laboratory characteristics of central nervous system and ocular syphilis.

Methods: A retrospective case series of 13 patients with a clinical and laboratory diagnosis of neurosyphilis and/or ocular syphilis who had been admitted to the Neurology and Neuro-ophthalmology Service of the Hospital de Clínicas, Federal University of Paraná. Read More

Am J Med 2018 Dec 2;131(12):1516-1519. Epub 2018 Jul 2.

Service de médecine interne, Centre de référence maladies auto-immunes et systémiques rares, Hôpital Cochin, Paris, France; Faculté de médecine Paris Descartes, 15 rue de l'école de médecine, Paris, France. Electronic address:

Background: Cerebral vasculitis caused by neurosyphilis is a re-emerging problem with diagnostic and treatment issues, especially for human immunodeficiency virus patients.

Methods: We present a case of relapsing syphilis-associated cerebral vasculitis, despite the recommended first-line antibiotic treatment, that was successfully treated with a second intravenous penicillin G course and corticosteroids.

Results: A 50-year old man went to the emergency department for bilateral episodes of red and painful eyes with progressive but severe visual acuity loss. Read More