title: The signs and symptoms of secondary syphilis.
abstract: The signs and symptoms of 105 patients with secondary syphilis were evaluated in a clinic for treatment of sexually transmissible diseases. The symptoms were, in order of decreasing frequency, pruritus, 44 patients; sore throat, 16; headache, nine; muscle aches, nine; fever, five; meningismus, three; loss of scalp hair, three; loss of appetite, two; loss of weight, two; and visual disturbances, one. The dominant morphologic characteristics of the lesions, in order of decreasing frequency, were maculopapular, 73 patients; papular, 13; macular, 10; annular papular, six; papulopustular, two; and psoriasiform papular, one. Almost a fourth of the patients were not aware that they had mucocutaneous lesions, and > 20% of patients had inconspicuous lesions. The distributions and morphologic features of the lesions of eight patients (7.6%) suggested other dermatoses.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005334:Fever / Q000209:etiology; D006261:Headache / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009132:Muscles / Q000473:pathology; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology; D010612:Pharyngitis / Q000209:etiology; D011537:Pruritus / Q000209:etiology; D012867:Skin / Q000473:pathology*; D013591:Syphilis, Cutaneous / Q000473:pathology*