1. What is syphilis? Syphilis is a chronic sexually transmitted disease caused by spirochete infection, and is an ancient and common STD. After the patient receives the infection, the spirochete can spread to the whole body, invade the whole body many airways, produce lesions. It can also be latent for many years or even for life without clinical manifestations. Syphilis can also be transmitted from the mother to the fetus through the blood of the placenta, resulting in premature birth, death or the delivery of a baby born with syphilis. Syphilis can be classified by its source of transmission as acquired syphilis (acquired) or congenital syphilis. Acquired syphilis is a long-term disease with symptoms that may or may not appear due to changes in the body’s resistance and responsiveness. It can be generally divided into one, two or three stages. The first stage is the chancre stage; the second stage is the rash stage, collectively called early syphilis, which is highly infectious; the third stage is the late stage, which is less infectious. 2. What is innocent syphilis? Acquired syphilis caused by non-sexual contact is called innocent syphilis. It is caused by direct transmission through general contact in daily life or blood transfusion, or indirect transmission through contact with objects contaminated with syphilis spirochetes, but only very few belong to this category. 3. What are the manifestations of syphilis? The manifestations of syphilis vary widely, but the main manifestations are erythema and rash on the genital area and the whole body, usually without obvious symptoms. The rash can be more or less severe. Most patients do not have any symptoms for a long period of time, but can be detected through blood tests. 4. How long does it take for syphilis to develop after infection? The time from infection with the syphilis spirochete to the appearance of symptoms is called the incubation period, which varies in length, generally 2 to 4 weeks. In terms of the appearance of symptoms of syphilis, it ranges from 10 to 90 days. If the number of infected syphilis spirochetes is high or if the infected person is in poor health, the onset is earlier. If the gonorrhea infection has been treated with penicillin or some other antibiotics, and if the person is more resistant, the onset is later. There are also some patients who may not show symptoms of stage I syphilis or may be neglected because the symptoms are so mild that they do not show symptoms of stage II syphilis until several months or even more than six months later. A number of patients also do not remember having symptoms of stage II syphilis and remain in the form of latent syphilis, which is only discovered through blood tests after a physical examination or the discovery of syphilis by a spouse or sexual partner.