1. Round Bodies Detected by Treponema pallidum Immunohistochemical Stain in Two Cases of Cutaneous Syphilitic Gummata.
- Author
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Birmingham SW, Saeed L, Thurlow CM, Vilfort K, Pillay A, Rojek NW, Doan LT, and Lee BA
- Subjects
- Humans, Treponema pallidum, Coloring Agents, Syphilis, Cutaneous diagnosis, Syphilis, Cutaneous pathology, Syphilis diagnosis, Syphilis pathology
- Abstract
Abstract: Tertiary syphilis may present a diagnostic challenge due to negative nontreponemal serologies in up to 30% of cases and frequent lack of identifiable spirochetes on histopathology or other direct detection tests. We report 2 cases of round bodies staining with Treponema pallidum immunohistochemistry by light microscopy in biopsies from cutaneous syphilitic gummata. In 1 case, the finding was validated 3 times by 2 independent laboratories; in the other case, T. pallidum was detected by polymerase chain reaction in the biopsy sample. Spirochete round bodies have previously been reported in the setting of electron microscopy and fluorography, but to the best of our knowledge, have not been reported by light microscopy in a routine skin biopsy. Although the clinical implications are unclear, this may represent a helpful new paradigm for the diagnosis of tertiary syphilis., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)
- Published
- 2024
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