Syphilis Speculation

[terrysfamily]

I’ve seen a program on TV some time ago about syphilis and what they could do for it back in the 1800’s , not much.

It said that they didn’t really have a cure and that left unchecked sometimes it would burn its self out and would go on its own. Albeit leaving disfigurement in its path.

What I’d like to know is, if someone contracted the said Syphilis and lived through it would they then become a carrier or at the very least have the virus in their system or would it have been purged from their body?

From another thread of mine, my grt grandfather contracted the infection and lived through it. Some 20 years later, he married my grt grandmother and had 2 children. Although, she had 3 children before marriage, which I can’t totally, discount as being his children too.

Now in all the censuses for his wife, there is no mention of any infirmities. Except the 1911 census that is, that column is blanked out until its official release in 2012.

My mother tells me that her gran was totally blind; in fact, her eyes were not in their sockets.

Pure speculation this, but if her blindness is not mentioned on any of the censuses, maybe she wasn’t blind then.

Could her husband have given her the Syphilis virus, which then took her eyes or am I just speculating too much and it just hasn’t been entered on the censuses.

What are your opinions, please?

[glynisaddy]

hi
there are 4 stages of syphilis-primary,secondary,latent and tertiary,the latent phase has no symptoms.syphilis can cause heart problems,mental
disorders,blindness and deafness.in the 1840's it was treated with potassium iodide and before that mercury which didin't have a very good cure rate
its possible that your ancestors blindness was cause by the syphilis.hope this is of use.
glynis

[Peter Goodey]

Have you checked the online resources available through your county library service? You'll probably find that there's a lot there of value to family historians - not only diseases :biggrin:

Syphilis, by the way, is caused by a bacterium, not a virus. Treatment these days is by antibiotics. Viruses aren't susceptible to antibiotics.

[terrysfamily]

Thankyou Glynis and Peter, you have both answered my questiion.

Syphilis is caused by a bacterium, not a virus. Knew I should have listened more in biology lessons.... English lessons.... History lessons, all of them in fact :biggrin:



Ps, what is it with that green shoot on the tree stump? It keeps moviing :skep:

[Jane Gee]

Hi
If you access BBC iplayer there was a very good programme this week on bbc2 last Thursday part 4/4 which dealt with an expert forensic teams search to identify the cause of death and background of a skeleton excavated from a burial ground in London from around the 1840s it was established this girl had syphillis but it wasnt the cause of death. A fascinating as well as sad programme.
Jane

[pattenwalsh]

Yes a good programe well worth watching even if you aren't into genealogy.Its called "History Cold Case","Crossbones Girl"

[hepzibah]

i did a paper on syphyliss at school. it doesnt burn itself out; it might lie dormant for years before manifesting itself, and can skip some symptoms, but he would have infected the people he had sexual intercourse with. it can cause blindness and birth defects, and mental disorders, so in answer to your question, i would say yes.

[terrysfamily]

i did a paper on syphyliss at school. it doesnt burn itself out; it might lie dormant for years before manifesting itself, and can skip some symptoms, but he would have infected the people he had sexual intercourse with. it can cause blindness and birth defects, and mental disorders, so in answer to your question, i would say yes.

Well as far as I know it didn't manifesting itself again in Alfred, he lived until he was 86 and died in 1940. As for health defects, there is a history of Aneurysm’s, which now runs down that family line. His son Albert died of one aged 52 and 3 of his children have had them, one in the brain (killed her) one in the leg (ended up having leg amputated) and one being my mother, she underwent a major operation to have the main artery that runs down the centre of her body replaced in 1996. All us children have to be scanned for them when we reach 50.

So in conclusion it looks like my grt gran did lose her sight by becoming infected.

[terrysfamily]

After recieving a message from hepzibah who pointed me in the direction of an experiment done in the USA to the effects of syphilis.I thought I would share it with anyone interested on here.

Just enter "Bad Blood:" A Case Study of the Tuskegee Syphilis Project into google and it should take you to it.

One referance I did find which is rather apt after my last post #8 was "Almost any organ can be attacked, such as the cardiovascular system, producing leaking heart valves and aneurysms--balloon-like bulges in the aorta that may burst, leading to instant death


Thank you hepzibah

Terry

[scousecan]

Hi Terry, the eye problems do exist with a specific manifestation of the bacteria: Secondary-stage syphilis can cause fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, and weight loss. About 50% of people have enlarged lymph nodes throughout the body, and in about 10%, the eyes become inflamed. About 10% of people have inflamed bones and joints that ache. In some people, the skin and whites of the eyes turn yellow (called jaundice) because hepatitis develops. Some have headaches or problems with hearing or vision because the brain, inner ears, or eyes are infected.Tertiary Stage: Symptoms range from mild to devastating. Tertiary syphilis has three main forms: benign tertiary syphilis, cardiovascular syphilis, and neurosyphilis.

Neurosyphilis (which affects the brain and spinal cord) occurs during the first 5 to 10 years after infection. It develops in about 5% of all people with untreated syphilis. It occurs in the following forms:

Meningovascular: The arteries of the brain or spinal cord become inflamed, causing a chronic form of meningitis. At first, people may have a headache and a stiff neck. They may feel dizzy, have difficulty concentrating and remembering things, and have insomnia. Vision may be blurred. Muscles in the arms, shoulders, and eventually legs may become weak or even paralyzed. This form can cause strokes.

So it can definitely find its way into the eyes. Sigh...Seems like an overwhelmingly painful way to pass one's last days.
Hope this helps!
Scousecan