Shortly after the appearance of primary chancre the patient notices a swelling of the glands in the groin on one or both sides, which feel like hard nuts, syphilitic buboes. These buboes never turn into an abscess, and remain hard for many, many months, until, under treatment, they slowly go down.
Mixed Chancre.
The fact that a man two or three days after an exposure begins to show a sore of Chancroidal type does not mean that he is already safe from developing a syphilitic chancre besides. In fact, it is a quite common occurrence that after development of typical Chancroid, in a week or two this sore begins to change in appearance and turns gradually into a syphilitic chancre. In other words, this man has contracted a double infection of both chancres, only their appearance takes place at different times, according to the difference in the length of time of their periods of incubation. The treatment of these mixed cases is naturally of more complicated character.
Secondary Period of Syphilis.
The secondary period of Syphilis begins with the first evidence that the syphilitic poison has spread all over the body, and that Syphilis from a local sore has become constitutional-blood disease. It takes usually about six weeks from the time of appearance of the primary chancre until the development of the constitutional symptoms. The very first symptom of the constitutional syphilis is a general rash, which has such a peculiar appearance that no competent physician has any difficulty in recognizing its nature. Together with the skin eruption, so-called “mucous plaques” can be seen in the throat, on the tongue, lips, etc. Very often syphilitics of the secondary period suffer from attacks of fever and get rapidly run down and wasted. In fact, an experienced physician can recognize a syphilitic by a peculiar paleness and general appearance suggesting slow waste of the body by some chronic poison.
The most common complaints in the secondary period of Syphilis are: Severe headaches and boring pains in the bones, particularly at night; different skin eruptions and patches of mucous plaques around the mouth or genital organs. These mucous plaques contain millions of active spirochetae, and for this reason the secondary period of Syphilis is the most dangerous period for transmission of the infection. The secondary period may last from a few months to one to two years, depending on the gravity of the case and the character of treatment.
Tertiary Period of Syphilis.
The tertiary period of Syphilis is the longest in duration and the most dangerous stage of the disease. It gradually succeeds the secondary active period of Syphilis and lasts, if not treated thoroughly, for many years, and sometimes thru the entire life.
The main characteristic of this period is that its lesions (sores) are fewer, but they are very deep and penetrate to the most vital and important organs, such as blood vessels, heart, spinal cord, and brain. This is the time when syphilitic germs, after a long period of apparent cure of the disease, suddenly renew their destructive activity and strike down their victim with some permanently crippling and incurable chronic disease. It has been mentioned before that Syphilis does not spare a single part or organ or tissue of the body. Anywhere, in the deepest recesses of the most vital and life-bearing centers of the body, a tumor of tertiary Syphilis can form, so-called Gumma, that has a natural tendency to break down, forming an ulcer and leading to a terrible destruction of tissues.
We shall not tire the reader by a detailed description of the possible results of this destruction of the body; it is sufficient to say that death is a welcome relief to the crippled, palsied, and insane victims of advanced Tertiary Syphilis. We shall mention only two diseases that are definitely proven to be after-results of Syphilis—diseases that are both incurable and that count as their victims countless thousands of men all over the world.