Sexually Transmitted Disease- Congenital Syphilis Screening and Treatment

Syphilis Screening Literature Review
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Syphilis Screening Literature Review
Introduction
Syphilis is one of the sexually transmitted diseases that occur commonly among pregnant women. A sexually transmitted infection occurs when you have intimate physical contact or unprotected sex with an infected person. In rare cases, syphilis is sometimes transmitted when you contact an infected person’s syphilis sore, which occurs both on external genitals and a person’s lips and in the mouth. When a pregnant woman gets infected with syphilis and is not treated immediately, she can pass the infection to the unborn baby. Currently, statistics indicate that up to 2 in 5 babies born by women suffering from untreated syphilis end up dying from the infection (Bach S, & Heavey, 2021). This sexually transmitted disease can be passed from the mother to the baby during the pregnancy period and in some cases during birth when the baby comes into contact with a sore. When a baby is born with syphilis, the condition is referred to as congenital syphilis. This paper aims to conduct a literature review analysis on various articles that assist in researching whether provider education concerning syphilis screening in the third trimester impacts screening rates within obstetric medical facilities within three months. The peer-reviewed articles revolve around sexually transmitted diseases and, in particular congenital syphilis screening and treatment. As the articles try to argue, provider education increases awareness of syphilis to obtain better neonatal outcomes.
Congenital syphilis Screening
In most states in the United States, it’s a policy that all pregnant women should get screened for syphilis and other sexually transmitted infections during the first prenatal care visit. In cases where receipt of prenatal care is not optimal, then syphilis serologic screening and treatment needs to be performed when the person is performing the pregnancy test. Maternal risk factors that expose women to syphilis during the pregnancy period include having multiple sex partners, sex as an aftermath of drug use of transactional sex, homelessness or unstable housing and late entry to prenatal care. In some cases, the care provider lacks enough information regarding ongoing risk behaviors and treatment procedures to reduce chances of reinfection, thus undermining proper management of pregnant women with syphilis (Matthias, Rahman, & Peterman, 2017). In some states, there are policies that state that no mothers and neonates are to leave the hospital without having their maternal serologic status documented at least once. There are various problems associated with syphilis during the pregnancy period. These include miscarriage, where babies die in the womb within less than 20 weeks of pregnancy, premature births occurring before 37 weeks of pregnancy, and fetal growth restrictions, which cause low birth weight. Another associated problem revolves around the placenta and the umbilical cord. In some instances, congenital syphilis causes the placenta to enlarge and swell the umbilical cord, which affects the unborn baby’s development. Lastly, syphilis also exposes pregnant mothers to still...