Review of Syphilis Patient Records in Izmir State Venereal Diseases Clinic from 1994 to 2004

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate patients attending a sexually transmitted infection (STI) outpatient clinic with a presumptive or definitive diagnosis of syphilis with regard to demographic characteristics, clinical findings, diagnostic criteria, treatment regimens and follow-up data over a 10-year period.Materials and Methods: The records of patients who had a presumptive/definitive diagnosis of syphilis[according to Centers for Disease Control (CDC) criteria] and who were referred to the Izmir State Venereal Diseases Outpatient Clinic or who were diagnosed in the clinic between 1994 and 2004 were reviewed retrospectively.Results: A total of 689 patients were included for evaluation; 378 (54.7%) were males and 311 (45.3%)were females. The ages of these patients ranged between 13-77 years, with a mean of 35.2±11.2. One hundred and fifty-three of the cases were sex workers. At the time of admission, 12.3% were considered tobe in the primary stage, 17.4% in the secondary stage and 70.3% in the latent stage. The most commonclinical findings in symptomatic patients were chancre (12%) and rash (9.2%). Human immunodeficiency virus(HIV) serology was screened in only 19.6% of the patients and two were positive. The most preferred treatment regimen was three doses of 2.4 million units benzathine penicillin (at one-week intervals).Conclusions: Our results indicate that syphilis is still present in the Turkish population and standard approaches in the treatment and follow-up of patients are lacking.