University of California San Diego Syphilis Microbiology Presentation

Scenario is: A 35 year old man comes to the free clinic where you are working with a red rash on the palms of his hands and the bottoms of his feet. He says that he has had a fever for a couple of days, and is exhibiting swollen lymph glands, aching muscles and fatigue. When asked about his medical history, he indicated that he had not had any recent illnesses. What is the disease? (I have already analyzed and found out the disease- it is Syphilis).

Once you have correctly identified the disease, you may proceed with the remainder of the project. You will have a maximum of 10 minutes to present the following information in a PowerPoint presentation: 

• disease name (including correct pronunciation…if you don’t know, look it up!), and analysis of the scenario (how/why did you decide that this was the disease?) 

• etiologic agent (including correct pronunciation of the name of the agent), and its general characteristics 

• key tests for isolation and identification of this organism (be specific for this microbe!); how would you isolate and identify this organism in the laboratory? What specific tests would you have to do on a person to determine that this etiologic agent was present?

• means of transmission and usual disease reservoirs 

• historical information to include when and who isolated the microbe and any significance of its name 

• signs and symptoms of the disease; body system(s) usually affected

• microbial virulence mechanisms contributing to the disease process 

• control & treatment for the disease 

• prevention, including current research about a vaccine or other means of control/prevention 

• Current local and global outbreaks (with incidence); what is the incidence of this disease in San Diego county/southern California, the US, and globally