Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 May;52(5):333-335.
doi: 10.1111/cup.14760. Epub 2024 Dec 4.

Diagnostic Accuracy of Treponema pallidum Immunostaining in a Cohort of Patients With Secondary Syphilis

Luis J Borda  1 , Ryan C Saal  2 , Robert J Pariser  1
Affiliations

Diagnostic Accuracy of Treponema pallidum Immunostaining in a Cohort of Patients With Secondary Syphilis

Luis J Borda et al. J Cutan Pathol. 2025 May.
No abstract available

Keywords: dermatopathology; immunohistochemistry; secondary syphili; sensitivity; specificity; syphilis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Histopathologic presentation of secondary syphilis and immunohistochemical staining. (A, B) The epidermis shows hyperkeratosis and mild irregular acanthosis. There is a dense lymphoplasmacytic infiltrate in the upper dermis with some extension more deeply into the reticular dermis and subcutis. (C) Numerous spirochetes are present in the upper dermis and the lower epidermis (original magnification: (A), hematoxylin and eosin, ×10; (B), hematoxylin and eosin, ×40; (C), anti‐ T. pallidum immunostaining, ×400).
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Study flow diagram. IHC, immunohistochemical; RPR, rapid plasma reagin.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Hoang M. P., High W. A., and Molberg K. H., “Secondary Syphilis: A Histologic and Immunohistochemical Evaluation,” Journal of Cutaneous Pathology 31, no. 9 (2004): 595–599, 10.1111/j.0303-6987.2004.00236.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Read P. J. and Donovan B., “Clinical Aspects of Adult Syphilis,” Internal Medicine Journal 42, no. 6 (2012): 614–620, 10.1111/j.1445-5994.2012.02814.x. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Martín‐Ezquerra G., Fernandez‐Casado A., Barco D., et al., “ Treponema pallidum Distribution Patterns in Mucocutaneous Lesions of Primary and Secondary Syphilis: An Immunohistochemical and Ultrastructural Study,” Human Pathology 40, no. 5 (2009): 624–630, 10.1016/j.humpath.2008.10.017. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Sangüeza O. P., Fleet S. L., and Requena L., “Update on the Histologic Findings of Cutaneous Infections,” Advances in Dermatology 16 (2000): 361–424. - PubMed
    1. Rosa M. F. A. P., Quintella L. P., Ferreira L. C., and Cuzzi T., “Immunohistochemical Detection of Treponema pallidum in Skin Samples With Clinical and Histopathological Correlations and Warthin‐Starry Staining Critical Analysis,” Anais Brasileiros de Dermatologia 98, no. 4 (2023): 480–486, 10.1016/j.abd.2022.02.008. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources