The Disease of All Times: A Retrospective Study of 272 Syphilis Cases

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the changes in our syphilis cases over the years, their demographic and clinical characteristics, and their laboratory findings.
 Methods: The study included patients diagnosed with syphilis between 2018 and 2022 at a tertiary hospital's Dermatology and Infectious Diseases (ID) outpatient clinics. Patients'; demographic, clinical, and laboratory data evaluated at the time of diagnosis. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 20.0 program was used to analyze the data. 
 Results: A total of 272 syphilis cases were included in the study. Among these cases, 82.4% were male, and 39.6% were 41–60 years old. In total, 7.4% were anti-HIV, and 2.9% were positive for HBsAg. The rates of the cases diagnosed at primary and secondary stages were 74.4%. Syphilis cases were detected more in 2018 than in other years (except 2020) and fewer in 2022 than in other years (p< 0.001). Anti-HIV positive cases were diagnosed more frequently at ID outpatient clinics, and cases with clinical findings were diagnosed more at dermatology outpatient clinics (p< 0.001). The rate of sexual partners not tested for syphilis was significantly higher in males than in females (p= 0.027). The rates of syphilis cases in the study and Turkey as a whole were similar in 2018–2019 but significantly different in 2020-2021-2022 (p< 0.001).
 Conclusion: Reporting syphilis is essential to identify the at-risk population prevent complications, and reduce transmission. Monitoring the profile of syphilis cases admitted to the hospital can increase the detection rate of syphilis cases.