post treatment for Syphilis Posted: 06-22-08 17:16pm
I need a medical opinion. I was diagnosed
and treated for secondary stage of
syphilis on November 10, 2007. My RPR
reactive test was 1:256. I was treated
with 2 sets of penicillin shots (7 days
apart) in each buttock. I had another RPR
test on January 3, 2008 which came back at
reactive 1:32. My third RPR test was taken
June 18, 2008 and was reactive 1:1. WHAT
DOES THIS ALL MEAN??? I know I will be
postive for a while, if not forever. But
am i still infected? Am i still
contagious? I contracted the disease in a
European ron-da-vue (learned my lesson the
hard way, trust me), came back to the
states and had a rash on my hands. I
pretty much diagnosed myself with paranoia
and much research. I did not have any
noticable sores as this is an often
undetectable disease. I made my doctor
test me (as i felt this was a text book
case with a rash on the palms of my hands
and soles of my feet), she was assured i
did not have this as i live in a high
class suburban area. She was shocked at
the results, and sent me to the health
department to be treated. (They were not
very explanative, just treated me and said
i was fine.) I am glad i did not listen to
anyone who called me crazy because my
diagnosis was correct. Long story short, i
feel as if my doctors do not have a strong
grasp on this disease. After i was treated
back in November, i was assured i was
cured. I have a monogomous boyfriend as of
January 2008, he was tested for ALL STD's
and was fine. I am worried that my disease
is not 100% cured. I have been cancelled
and was denied for health insurance by
many companies because of this disease. My
mistakes will haunt me forever. I am
confused with my blood test results. Can
someone please explain my results with
detail to me. My boyfriend was tested
after we were sexually active (i use
condoms, even though i know it is not 100%
effective) because of my paranoia and he
was tested negative for Syphilis. But i am
still not convinced because i have read it
takes up to 4-6 weeks for a test to read
positive after infection. He was tested
this past friday and will receive the
results this next week. I, of course am a
nervous wreck. He is fully aware of my
disease from day one and has taken the
responsibility to deal with it as it was a
wrenching part of my life. Sorry i have
gone off on a tangent, i just NEED to
understand my test results and would like
to be explained what they mean. Thank you
for your time.
