Syphilis in an Infant Acquired by Mouth‐to‐Mouth Transfer of Prechewed Food

Zhang, Ru‐Zhi; Jin, Hang

doi:10.1111/pde.12954

Cited by 11 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 5 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…At present, only primary and secondary syphilis are considered as “infectious” and targeted in public health control. Although a reported clinical case of an infant who was infected by mouth-to-mouth transfer of prechewed food from a patient with early latent syphilis [ 10 ] may support this idea, the existing technology is insufficient to demonstrate active T. pallidum in saliva in this study. Further investigation is required.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 80%

“…Treponema pallidum can disseminate to nearly all tissues and organs, and T. pallidum DNA has been detected by PCR from a variety of biospecimens, such as lesions, blood, cerebrospinal fluid, urine, and semen [ 5–9 ]. Recently, several cases provided compelling evidence that mouth-to-mouth transfer of prechewed food or kissing could also result in the transmission of T. pallidum [ 10–12 ]. A previous study also showed that there was a high prevalence of T. pallidum DNA in oral swabs from patients with syphilis [ 13 ].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

A New Specimen for Syphilis Diagnosis: Evidence by High Loads ofTreponema pallidumDNA in Saliva

Wang

Zheng

et al. 2020

Clinical Infectious Diseases

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background DNA from many pathogens can be detected in saliva. However, the presence and quantity of Treponema pallidum DNA in syphilis patients in saliva is unknown. Methods A total of 234 syphilis patients with different stages and 30 volunteers were enrolled. Paired saliva and plasma samples were collected from all the participants. Consecutive saliva samples from 9 patients were collected every 4 hours following treatment. Treponema pallidum DNA in samples was determined by nested PCR and droplet digital PCR targeting polA and Tpp47. Results Treponema pallidum DNA detection rates in saliva and plasma were 31.0% (9/29) and 51.7% (15/29) in primary syphilis(p=0.11), 87.5% (63/72) and 61.1% (44/72) in secondary syphilis(p<0.001), 25.6%(21/82) and 8.5%(7/82) in latent syphilis (p=0.004), 21.6%(11/51) and 5.9%(3/51) in symptomatic neurosyphilis (p=0.021), respectively. The loads of Tpp47 and polA in saliva were median 627 copies/ml (range, 0-101200 copies/ml) and median 726 copies/ml (range, 0-117260 copies/ml) for syphilis patients, respectively. In plasma, however, the loads of Tpp47 and polA were very low: median 0 copies/ml (range, 0-149.6 copies/ml) and median 0 copies/ml (range, 0-176 copies/ml), respectively. The loads of Treponema pallidum DNA in saliva during treatment were fluctuating downward, and the clearance time was positively correlated with the loads of Treponema pallidum DNA before treatment. Conclusions The collection of saliva is noninvasive and convenient. The high loads of Treponema pallidum DNA in saliva and the reduction after treatment indicated that saliva can be not only a diagnostic fluid for syphilis, but also an indicator of therapeutic effectiveness.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 80%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

A New Specimen for Syphilis Diagnosis: Evidence by High Loads ofTreponema pallidumDNA in Saliva

Wang

Zheng

et al. 2020

Clinical Infectious Diseases

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…China 10-months Girl Secondary Ear (plaque) RPR 1:4 Mother prechewing feed and close contact No data 4 [ 27 ]. China 2 Boy Secondary Hair (alopecia), perianal (condyloma lata) RPR 1:128 Grandmother prechewing feed and close contact No data 5 [ 33 ]. China 2 Boy Primary Tongue (painless ulcer) RPR 1:8 Grandmother prechewing feed and close contact No data 6 [ 21 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unusual erythematous plaque with white scales, a case of acquired syphilis in a child and literature review

Yang

et al. 2021

BMC Infect Dis

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Syphilis in children is uncommon with the mode of infection for this rare condition likely being congenital or acquired. While most acquired cases of syphilis in children result from sexual abuse, children can also be infected with syphilis through kissing, breastfeeding, sharing of daily necessities or pre-chewed food. Here, we report a case of acquired secondary syphilis in a child due to consumption of pre-chewed-food and provide a review of the literature on the characteristics of acquired syphilis in preschool children. Case presentation A 3-year-old girl presented with erythematous plaques and scales on her head, neck, and thighs as well as flat red papules with a moist, well circumscribed surface covered with a grayish-white film. The grandmother who cared for the girl was in the habit of pre-chewing food before giving it to the girl. The child and grandmother tested positive for RPR. The girl, who was not sexually abused, was diagnosed with acquired secondary syphilis, resulting from the transmission of pre-chewed food from her grandmother. Conclusions Our case report and literature review reveal that close contact among family members can result in the transmission of syphilis. We recommend that pre-chewing food should be discouraged by caregivers when caring for their children to avoid disease transmission.

show abstract

“…While looking recently for papers to interest readers of clinical round-up, I came across this case report 2. It describes the postulated transmission in China of syphilis from a grandmother who had active syphilis to her 2-year-old grandchild through the practice of prechewing food before giving it to the child.…”

Section: Syphilis Transmission To a Childmentioning

confidence: 99%

Clinical round-up

Herbert¹

2018

Sex Transm Infect

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Syphilis in an Infant Acquired by Mouth‐to‐Mouth Transfer of Prechewed Food

Cited by 11 publications

References 5 publications

A New Specimen for Syphilis Diagnosis: Evidence by High Loads ofTreponema pallidumDNA in Saliva

A New Specimen for Syphilis Diagnosis: Evidence by High Loads ofTreponema pallidumDNA in Saliva

Unusual erythematous plaque with white scales, a case of acquired syphilis in a child and literature review

Clinical round-up

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About