Oral Syphilis Responds to Topical Antibiotic Therapy but Still Needs Definitive Systemic Treatment
Kyu-Hyeon Ahn1, Hyeong-Joon Ji1, Ok-Joon Kim1, Byung-Gook Kim2, Yeong-Gwan Im3
1Department of Oral Pathology, School of Dentistry, Dental Science Research Institute, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Korea
2Department of Oral Medicine, School of Dentistry, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Korea
3Department of Oral Medicine, Chonnam National University Dental Hospital, Gwangju, Korea
2Department of Oral Medicine, School of Dentistry, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Korea
3Department of Oral Medicine, Chonnam National University Dental Hospital, Gwangju, Korea
Correspondence to: Yeong-Gwan Im
Department of Oral Medicine, Chonnam National University Dental Hospital, 33 Yongbong-ro, Buk-gu, Gwangju 61186, Korea
Tel: +82-62-530-5678
Fax: +82-62-530-5679
E-mail: imygwise@jnu.ac.kr
Department of Oral Medicine, Chonnam National University Dental Hospital, 33 Yongbong-ro, Buk-gu, Gwangju 61186, Korea
Tel: +82-62-530-5678
Fax: +82-62-530-5679
E-mail: imygwise@jnu.ac.kr
Received February 14, 2018; Revised March 8, 2018; Accepted March 9, 2018.
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
- Abstract
- Syphilis, one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases, is caused by the microorganism Treponema pallidum . Syphilis consists of several clinical stages that may include signs in the oral and perioral regions. Syphilis is treated effectively with systemic antimicrobial therapy using antibiotics such as penicillin. This article describes a case where topical antibacterial therapy with doxycycline was effective in treating oral papular lesions associated with primary syphilis in a 24-year-old male. He was immediately referred to a dermatologist, and antibiotic therapy was administered in response to positive diagnostic test results for syphilis. Although oral syphilitic lesions may be resolved by dental professionals using topical treatments, syphilitic infections should be managed in consultation with medical specialists using systemic antibiotic therapy.
- Keywords : Doxycycline; Oral mucosa; Oral syphilis
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