![]() ![]() Testing for IgM-class antibodies to T pallidum should not be performed during routine pregnancy screening. Non-treponemal antibodies are detected by the rapid plasma reagin (RPR) assay, which is typically positive during current infection and negative following treatment or during late/latent forms of syphilis.įor prenatal syphilis screening, the syphilis IgG test (SYPH1 / Syphilis IgG with Reflex, Enzyme Immunoassay, Serum) is recommended. Therefore, detection of antibodies to nontreponemal antigens, such as cardiolipin (a lipoidal antigen released by host cells damaged by T pallidum) may help to differentiate between active and past syphilis infection. As the disease progresses into the secondary phase, antibodies to T pallidum reach peak titers and may persist indefinitely regardless of the disease state or prior therapy. Patients tested by serology during the primary phase may be negative for antibodies, especially if testing is performed during the first 1 to 2 weeks after symptom onset. Syphilis is categorized by an early primary infection in which patients may have nonspecific symptoms and, potentially, genital lesions. These features, together with the fact that T pallidum cannot be isolated in culture, mean that serologic techniques play a major role in the diagnosis and follow-up of treatment for syphilis. The infection is systemic, and the disease is characterized by periods of latency. Syphilis is a disease caused by infection with the spirochete Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. ![]()
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