Will routine physical examination detect syphilis

The routine physical examinations that most people come into contact with on a daily basis, whether it is the employee welfare physical examination organized by the unit or the basic entry-level package purchased by oneself at the physical examination institution, will not include syphilis testing as a routine item.

The core positioning of routine physical examinations is to screen for high-incidence basic diseases and common tumors such as high blood pressure, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, abnormal liver and kidney function, and common nodules in various organs. Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease and is not covered by general screening. A while ago, I met a 28-year-old young man in the clinic. He was about to get his marriage certificate and get a premarital examination, but he was found to be positive for syphilis antibodies. He came over with his physical examination reports from the workplace for the past three years and asked, "My physical examinations every year are all normal. How did I get this disease?" After looking through his physical examination report, he found that the annual blood test included only routine blood tests, liver and kidney function, blood lipids and blood sugar, and not even two and a half tests for hepatitis B, let alone syphilis testing. He himself had no idea that routine physical examinations did not check for STDs at all, and he thought that all the problems in his body could be screened out.

Of course, not all examinations with the title of "routine physical examination" do not include syphilis. Physical examinations with clear and rigid requirements, such as military enlistment and recruitment of public employees, themselves need to check for serious infectious diseases, and will include items such as syphilis and AIDS as required items; some people have upgraded their physical examination packages and proactively added four infectious examinations including hepatitis B, hepatitis C, syphilis, and AIDS, which can naturally detect whether there is infection at the same time.

In the past two years, many scholars in the field of public health have called for the rapid initial screening of syphilis to be made an optional add-on to routine physical examinations. After all, the proportion of latent syphilis is getting higher and higher. Many people are infected without any typical symptoms such as chancre and rash. It is not until the problems of neurosyphilis and cardiovascular syphilis are discovered that it is not only difficult to treat, but may also leave irreversible sequelae. If screened out early, it can be cured with a few injections of long-acting penicillin at extremely low cost. However, there are many voices of opposition. After all, syphilis infection status is very private personal health information. If the unified physical examination organized by the unit is added at will, it is easy for information leakage and even employment discrimination. Instead, good intentions lead to bad things.

If you have had unprotected high-risk sexual behavior before, or have other suspicious contact history, don’t wait for a routine physical examination to help you check in. Go to the hospital yourself and get a call from the dermatology and venereology department or the infectious disease department, and get a syphilis antibody test. It costs tens of dollars and you can get the results on the same day after drawing a tube of blood. Early detection and early treatment are very effective, so don’t be sorry.