Oral Syphilis: Report of Three Cases and Characterization of the Inflammatory Cells

The document reports on three cases of syphilis, emphasizing the significance of oral lesions in diagnosing the disease. The first case involved a 48-year-old male with a bleeding ulcer on the lower lip, patchy alopecia, and skin lesions. The second case was a 61-year-old male with white spots and nodules on the tongue, accompanied by skin lesions on various body parts. The third case described a 17-year-old male with an ulcerated lesion on the tongue and lymph node involvement. Serologic tests and an incisional biopsy, showing epithelial hyperplasia and mononuclear inflammatory cell infiltration, confirmed the diagnosis of syphilis in all three patients. Treatment was administered as 1 weekly dose of penicillin for 2 or 3 weeks. Immunohistochemical reactions were also performed. The study underscores the need for clinicians to recognize oral syphilis lesions to diagnose this variable and re-emerging infectious disease.