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Warning:
This document is being maintained for historical purposes, but is now out of date. To view current guidelines please visit:
- STD Treatment Guidelines at http://www.cdc.gov/STD/treatment
1998 Guidelines for Treatment of Sexually Transmitted Disease
Date: 01/23/98
Source: 47(RR-1);1-118
SUGGESTED CITATION: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 1998 Guidelines for Treatment of Sexually Transmitted Diseases. MMWR 1998;47(No. RR-1): {inclusive page numbers}.
The material in this report was prepared for publication by: National Center for HIV, STD and TB Prevention, Division of Sexually Transmitted Diseases Prevention
CONGENITAL SYPHILIS
Effective prevention and detection of congenital syphilis depends on the identification of syphilis in pregnant women and, therefore, on the routine serologic screening of pregnant women at the time of the first prenatal visit. Serologic testing and a sexual history also should be obtained at 28 weeks of gestation and at delivery in communities and populations in which the risk for congenital syphilis is high. Moreover, as part of the management of pregnant women who have syphilis, information concerning treatment of sex partners should be obtained in order to assess possible maternal reinfection. All pregnant women who have syphilis should be tested for HIV infection.
Routine screening of newborn sera or umbilical cord blood is not recommended. Serologic testing of the mother's serum is preferred to testing infant serum, because the serologic tests performed on infant serum can be nonreactive if the mother's serologic test result is of low titer or if the mother was infected late in pregnancy. No infant should leave the hospital without the maternal serologic status having been documented at least once during pregnancy.
Evaluation and Treatment of Infants During the First Month of Life
Diagnostic Considerations
The diagnosis of congenital syphilis is complicated by the transplacental transfer of maternal nontreponemal and treponemal IgG antibodies to the fetus. This transfer of antibodies makes the interpretation of reactive serologic tests for syphilis in infants difficult. Treatment decisions often must be made based on a) identification of syphilis in the mother; b) adequacy of maternal treatment; c) presence of clinical, laboratory, or radiographic evidence of syphilis in the infant; and d) comparison of the infant's nontreponemal serologic test results with those of the mother.
Who Should Be Evaluated
All infants born to seroreactive mothers should be evaluated with a quantitative nontreponemal serologic test (RPR or VDRL) performed on infant serum (i.e., umbilical cord blood might be contaminated with maternal blood and might yield a false-positive result). A treponemal test (i.e., MHA-TP or FTA-ABS) of a newborn's serum is not necessary.
Evaluation
All infants born to women who have reactive serologic tests for syphilis should be examined thoroughly for evidence of congenital syphilis (e.g., nonimmune hydrops, jaundice, hepatosplenomegaly, rhinitis, skin rash, and/or pseudoparalysis of an extremity). Pathologic examination of the placenta or umbilical cord using specific fluorescent antitreponemal antibody staining is suggested. Darkfield microscopic examination or direct fluorescent antibody staining of suspicious lesions or body fluids (e.g., nasal discharge) also should be performed.
Further evaluation of the infant is dependent on a) whether any abnormalities are present on physical examination, b) maternal treatment history, c) stage of infection at the time of treatment, and d) comparison of maternal (at delivery) and infant nontreponemal titers utilizing the same test and preferably the same laboratory.
Treatment
Infants should be treated for presumed congenital syphilis if they were born to mothers who met any of the following criteria:
Had untreated syphilis at delivery; *
Had serologic evidence of relapse or reinfection after treatment (i.e., a fourfold or greater increase in nontreponemal antibody titer);
Was treated with erythromycin or other nonpenicillin regimen for syphilis during pregnancy; **
Was treated for syphilis less than or equal to 1 month before delivery;
Did not have a well-documented history of treatment for syphilis;
Was treated for early syphilis during pregnancy with the appropriate penicillin regimen, but nontreponemal antibody titers did not decrease at least fourfold; or
Was treated appropriately before pregnancy but had insufficient serologic follow-up to ensure an adequate treatment response and lack of current infection (i.e., an appropriate response includes a} at least a fourfold decrease in nontreponemal antibody titers for patients treated for early syphilis and b} stable or declining nontreponemal titers of less than or equal to 1:4 for other patients).
Regardless of a maternal history of infection with T. pallidum or treatment for syphilis, the evaluation should include the following tests if the infant has either a) an abnormal physical examination that is consistent with congenital syphilis, b) a serum quantitative nontreponemal serologic titer that is fourfold greater than the mother's titer, or c) a positive darkfield or fluorescent antibody test of body fluid(s).
CSF analysis for VDRL, cell count, and protein;
Complete blood count (CBC) and differential CBC and platelet count;
Other tests as clinically indicated (e.g., long-bone radiographs, chest radiograph, liver-function tests, cranial ultrasound, ophthalmologic examination, and auditory brainstem response).
Recommended Regimens
Aqueous crystalline penicillin G 100,000-150,000 units/kg/day, administered as 50,000 units/kg/dose IV every 12 hours during the first 7 days of life, and every 8 hours thereafter for a total of 10 days;
OR
Procaine penicillin G 50,000 units/kg/dose IM a day in a single dose for 10 days.
If greater than 1 day of therapy is missed, the entire course should be restarted. Data are insufficient regarding the use of other antimicrobial agents (e.g., ampicillin). When possible, a full 10-day course of penicillin is preferred. The use of agents other than penicillin requires close serologic follow-up to assess adequacy of therapy.
In all other situations, the maternal history of infection with T. pallidum and treatment for syphilis must be considered when evaluating and treating the infant. For infants who have a normal physical examination and a serum quantitative nontreponemal serologic titer the same or less than fourfold the maternal titer, the evaluation depends on the maternal treatment history and stage of infection.
The infant should receive the following treatment if a) the maternal treatment was not given, was undocumented, was a nonpenicillin regimen, or was administered less than or equal to 4 weeks before delivery; b) the adequacy of maternal treatment for early syphilis cannot be evaluated because the nontreponemal serologic titer has not decreased fourfold; or c) relapse or reinfection is suspected because of a fourfold increase in maternal nontreponemal serologic titer.
Aqueous penicillin G or procaine penicillin G for 10 days. Some experts prefer this therapy if the mother has untreated early syphilis at delivery. A complete evaluation is unnecessary if 10 days of parenteral therapy is given. However such evaluation may be useful; a lumbar puncture may document CSF abnormalities that would prompt close follow-up. *** Other tests (e.g., CBC and platelet count and bone radiographs) may be performed to further support a diagnosis of congenital syphilis; or
Benzathine penicillin G 50,000 units/kg (single dose IM) if the infant's evaluation (i.e., CSF examination, long-bone radiographs, and CBC with platelets) is normal and follow-up is certain. If any part of the infant's evaluation is abnormal or not done, or the CSF analysis is uninterpretable secondary to contamination with blood, then a 10-day course of penicillin (see preceding paragraph) is required. ****
Evaluation is unnecessary if the maternal treatment a) was during pregnancy, appropriate for the stage of infection, and greater than 4 weeks before delivery; b) was for early syphilis and the nontreponemal serologic titers decreased fourfold after appropriate therapy; or c) was for late latent infection, the nontreponemal titers remained stable and low, and there is no evidence of maternal reinfection or relapse. A single dose of benzathine penicillin G 50,000 units/kg IM should be administered. (Note: Some experts would not treat the infant but would provide close serologic follow-up.) Furthermore, in these situations, if the infant's nontreponemal test is nonreactive, no treatment is necessary.
Evaluation and treatment are unnecessary if the maternal treatment was before pregnancy, after which the mother was evaluated multiple times, and the nontreponemal serologic titer remained low and stable before and during pregnancy and at delivery (VDRL less than or equal to 1:2; RPR less than or equal to 1:4). Some experts would treat with benzathine penicillin G 50,000 units/kg as a single IM injection, particularly if follow-up is uncertain.
Evaluation and Treatment of Older Infants and Children Who Have Congenital Syphilis
Children who are identified as having reactive serologic tests for syphilis after the neonatal period (i.e., at greater than 1 month of age) should have maternal serology and records reviewed to assess whether the child has congenital or acquired syphilis (for acquired syphilis, see Primary and Secondary Syphilis and Latent Syphilis). If the child possibly has congenital syphilis, the child should be evaluated fully (i.e., a CSF examination for cell count, protein, and VDRL {abnormal CSF evaluation includes a reactive VDRL test, greater than 5 WBCs/mm3, and/or protein greater than 40 mg/dL}; an eye examination; and other tests such as long-bone radiographs, CBC, platelet count, and auditory brainstem response as indicated clinically). Any child who possibly has congenital syphilis or who has neurologic involvement should be treated with aqueous crystalline penicillin G, 200,000-300,000 units/kg/day IV (administered as 50,000 units/kg every 4-6 hours) for 10 days.
Follow-Up
All seroreactive infants (or an infant whose mother was seroreactive at delivery) should receive careful follow-up examinations and serologic testing (i.e., a nontreponemal test) every 2-3 months until the test becomes nonreactive or the titer has decreased fourfold. Nontreponemal antibody titers should decline by 3 months of age and should be nonreactive by 6 months of age if the infant was not infected (i.e., if the reactive test result was caused by passive transfer of maternal IgG antibody) or was infected but adequately treated. The serologic response after therapy may be slower for infants treated after the neonatal period. If these titers are stable or increasing after 6-12 months of age, the child should be evaluated, including a CSF examination, and treated with a 10-day course of parenteral penicillin G.
Treponemal tests should not be used to evaluate treatment response because the results for an infected child can remain positive despite effective therapy. Passively transferred maternal treponemal antibodies could be present in an infant until age 15 months. A reactive treponemal test after age 18 months is diagnostic of congenital syphilis. If the nontreponemal test is nonreactive at this time, no further evaluation or treatment is necessary. If the nontreponemal test is reactive at age 18 months, the infant should be fully (re)evaluated and treated for congenital syphilis.
Infants whose initial CSF evaluation is abnormal should undergo a repeat lumbar puncture approximately every 6 months until the results are normal. A reactive CSF VDRL test or abnormal CSF indices that cannot be attributed to other ongoing illness requires re-treatment for possible neurosyphilis.
Follow-up of children treated for congenital syphilis after the newborn period should be the same as that prescribed for congenital syphilis among neonates.
Special Considerations
Penicillin Allergy
Infants and children who require treatment for syphilis but who have a history of penicillin allergy or develop an allergic reaction presumed secondary to penicillin should be desensitized, if necessary, and treated with penicillin. Skin testing may be helpful in some patients and settings (see Management of Patients Who Have a History of Penicillin Allergy). Data are insufficient regarding the use of other antimicrobial agents (e.g., ceftriaxone); if a nonpenicillin agent is used, close serologic and CSF follow-up is indicated.
HIV Infection
Data are insufficient regarding whether infants who have congenital syphilis and whose mothers are coinfected with HIV require different evaluation, therapy, or follow-up for syphilis than is recommended for all infants.
* A woman treated with a regimen other than those recommended in these guidelines for treatment of syphilis should be considered untreated.
** The absence of a fourfold greater titer for an infant does not exclude congenital syphilis.
*** CSF test results obtained during the neonatal period can be difficult to interpret; normal values differ by gestational age and are higher in preterm infants. Values as high as 25 white blood cells (WBCs)/mm3 and/or protein of 150 mg/dL might occur among normal neonates; some experts, however, recommend that lower values (i.e., 5 WBCs/mm3 and protein of 40 mg/dL) be considered the upper limits of normal. Other causes of elevated values also should be considered when an infant is being evaluated for congenital syphilis.
**** If the infant's nontreponemal test is nonreactive and the likelihood of the infant being infected is low, some experts recommend no evaluation but treatment of the infant with a single IM dose of benzathine penicillin G 50,000 units/kg for possible incubating syphilis, after which the infant should have close serologic follow-up.
