title: Syphilis as a diagnosis of liver abnormalities in HIV.
abstract: In order to investigate syphilitic liver involvement in HIV-infected patients, a single-centre retrospective study of a cohort of HIV-infected patients with syphilis was performed at the Infectious Diseases Clinic of Perugia, Italy, between December 2002 and March 2010. Fifty HIV-infected patients were identified with syphilis plus baseline and follow-up liver tests. The following syphilis diagnoses were recorded: 19 secondary (38%), 26 latent (52%), and 5 tertiary/neurosyphilis (12%). Syphilitic hepatitis was found in 5/50 (10%) patients. This finding supports the importance of including syphilis in the differential diagnosis of liver enzyme abnormalities in HIV-infected patients. An early diagnosis of syphilitic hepatitis can lead to rapid normalization of liver function following appropriate therapy, prevents the progression of syphilis, and limits the further spread of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV.
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases Clinic, Department of Experimental Medicine and Biochemical Sciences, University of Perugia, Santa Maria della Misericordia Hospital, Perugia, Italy. lisa.malincarne@unipg.it
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Malincarne
authors.forename: Maria Bruna
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Pasticci
authors.forename: Giorgia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Angeli
authors.forename: Franco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Baldelli
authors.forename: Giuseppe Vittorio
authors.initials: GV
authors.lastname: De Socio
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006505:Hepatitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008099:Liver / Q000503:physiopathology; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013587:Syphilis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000821:virology*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents