What is the risk of congenital syphilis in pregnant women?

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I can understand your concern.

Since the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases is increasing, the chances of pregnant women getting infected with syphilis and thereby carrying it to infants are increasing.

Most commonly, transmission occurs transplacentally, and it may occur at any time during gestation. However, the risk of transmission to the fetus depends on the stage of maternal infection. In general, the longer the time that primary infection occurs before pregnancy, the more benign the outcome in the infant occurs with respect to the rate and severity of infection. Untreated mothers have a high risk of transmission to infants.

I suggest the following screening tests for a pregnant woman.

1. RPR ((rapid plasma reagin).

2. VDRL (Venereal Disease Research Laboratory) test.

3. Fluorescent treponemal antibody absorption (FTA-ABS) test.

The prevention of any STI is protected intercourse with the help of barrier contraceptives. Also, testing of pregnant women should be done before and after the pregnancy. Also, women who already have been detected with syphilis need proper treatment, thereby decreasing the infectivity and decreasing the chances of infection. Infected infants may suffer severe sequelae, including cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus, sensorineural hearing loss, and musculoskeletal deformity, so evaluation is required.

Hope it helps.

Thanks and regards.