Thanks to A.Hill for today’s pearl:
19M presents with fever and rash on palms and soles x1 week.
Vitals: Temp 101 HR 105 BP 130/80 RR 12 O2 100%
What is the differential for rash on the palms and soles?
Disseminated gonococcus
Rocky mtn spotted fever
Hand, foot, and mouth disease
Secondary syphilis
Kawasaki disease
Toxic shock
Stevens-Johnson or TEN
On further history, the patient reports risky sexual behaviors and a painless chancre on his genitals 1 month ago.
What confirmatory test(s) can you order?
What is the treatment? What if he had no hx of chancre?
Tests
Screening Tests (low specificity) not appropriate for our high clinical suspicion
- Venereal Disease Research Laboratory (VDRL)
- Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR)
- Toludine Red Unheated Serum Test (TRUST)
Confirmatory tests (highly specific)
- Fluorescent treponemal antibody absorption (FTA-ABS)
- Microhemagglutination test for antibodies to Treponema pallidum (MHA-TP)
- Treponema pallidum particle agglutination assay (TP-PA)
- Treponema pallidum enzyme immunoassay (TP-EIA)
Intravenous penicillin G (3 to 4 million units IV Q 4h or 18 to 24 million units per day by continuous infusion for 10 to 14 days)