Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the spirochetal bacterium ''Treponema pallidum'' subspecies ''pallidum''. The route of transmission of syphilis is almost always through sexual contact, although there are examples of congenital syphilis via transmission from mother to child in utero.
The signs and symptoms of syphilis are numerous; before the advent of serological testing, precise diagnosis was very difficult. In fact, the disease was dubbed the "Great Imitator" because it was often confused with other diseases, particularly in its tertiary stage.
Syphilis can generally be treated with antibiotics, including penicillin. If left untreated, syphilis can damage the heart, aorta, brain, eyes, and bones. In some cases these effects can be fatal. In 1998, the complete genetic sequence of ''T. pallidum'' was published, which may aid understanding of the pathogenesis of syphilis.
In the developed world, syphilis infections declined throughout the 1980s and 1990s due to widespread use of antibiotics and the effect of the HIV epidemic. Since the year 2000, rates of syphilis have been increasing again in the USA, UK, Australia and Europe. Much of the increase has occurred among men who have sex with men and is attributed to increased rates of unsafe sexual practices.
The name "syphilis" was coined by the Italian physician and poet Girolamo Fracastoro in his epic noted poem, written in Latin, titled ''Syphilis sive morbus gallicus'' (Latin for "Syphilis or The French Disease") in 1530. The protagonist of the poem is a shepherd named Syphilus (perhaps a variant spelling of Sipylus, a character in Ovid's ''Metamorphoses''). Syphilus is presented as the first man to contract the disease, sent by the god Apollo as punishment for the defiance that Syphilus and his followers had shown him. From this character Fracastoro derived a new name for the disease, which he also used in his medical text ''De Contagionibus'' ("On Contagious Diseases").
Until that time, as Fracastoro notes, syphilis had been called the "French disease" in Italy and Germany, and the "Italian disease" in France. In addition, the Dutch called it the "Spanish disease", the Russians called it the "Polish disease", the Turks called it the "Christian disease" or "Frank disease" (''frengi'') and the Tahitians called it the "British disease". These "national" names are due to the disease often being spread by foreign sailors and soldiers during their frequent, unprotected sexual contact with local prostitutes.
During the 16th century, it was called "great pox" in order to distinguish it from smallpox. In its early stages, the great pox produced a rash similar to smallpox (also known as variola). However, the name is misleading, as smallpox was a far more deadly disease. The terms "Lues" (or ''Lues venerea'', Latin for "venereal plague") and "Cupid's disease" have also been used to refer to syphilis. In Scotland, syphilis was referred to as the ''Grandgore''. The ulcers suffered by British soldiers in Portugal were termed "The Black Lion".
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