The British Journal of Venereal Diseases最新文献

We describe two cases of spontaneous rupture of the membranes, followed by premature labour at 32 and 34 weeks' gestation, in association with gonococcal infection.

I investigated over 600 homosexual men in four countries (Sweden, Finland, Ireland, and Australia) regarding the number of times they had contracted a sexually transmitted disease (STD) and several psychological variables including masculinity and feminity, sex role conservatism, relationships with parents, number of sexual partners, attitudes towards homosexuality, and involvement in the homosexual subculture. Using multiple linear regression in each country, it was found that 19-42% of the variance of number of times infected could be accounted for by psychosocial factors, seven of which were common to all countries. The number of sexual partners was not a significant variable in any country. These data strongly suggest that numbers of infections in homosexual men are best predicted by psychological factors, and this has considerable implications for preventative and treatment programmes for homosexuals.

Painless swelling of the parotid salivary gland was observed in a patient presenting with secondary syphilis. This case is of special interest to venereologists and surgeons as parotitis associated with syphilis may be mistaken for common tumours of the parotid glands. A diagnosis of syphilitic parotitis should be considered in patients presenting with swollen parotid salivary glands in countries where syphilis is prevalent.

A total of 74 men and 26 women with uncomplicated gonorrhoea were treated with ceftizoxime sodium 0.5 g intramuscularly. The cure rate was 99% and included successful treatment of four infections due to beta-lactamase producing organisms. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of ceftizoxime in vitro were very much lower than those of penicillin and cefuroxime, and side effects were minimal. We conclude that ceftizoxime is effective against Neisseria gonorrhoeae in vivo and in vitro.

We investigated by means of radiolabelled precursors the source and nature of the polyanionic macromolecules present in rabbit tissues during active syphilis infection. Previous studies indicated that Treponema pallidum itself does not synthesise glycosaminoglycans, at least in vitro. In replicate experiments on unilaterally infected rabbits, tissue from the orchitic testis incorporated two to three times more 35S-sulphate and 3H-glucosamine (on a wet weight basis) than tissue from the non-orchitic contralateral testis. Incorporation of 35S-sulphate was independent of the number of viable T pallidum organisms present in the infested tissue, which suggested that incorporation represented biosynthesis by the host and not the treponeme. Testes from syphilitic rabbits two days after treatment with high doses (100 mg/kg) of penicillin incorporated less 35S-sulphate than untreated infected testes, but more than normal uninfected rabbit testes. This suggests that active syphilitic infection was necessary for maximum biosynthesis of the macromolecule(s) by host tissue. Hydrodynamic profiles showed incorporation of radiolabelled precursors into two distinct fractions of different sizes, which may represent a proteoglycan and a sulphated glycoprotein. Alcian blue staining of syphilitic testes at or after peak orchitis showed focal deposition of newly synthesised polyanionic components during peak orchitis and a more generalised fibrosis in testes after peak orchitis.