Speaker:
Dr. Anna Fuezery received her Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, U.S.A. She completed a 2-year postdoctoral clinical chemistry fellowship at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutes in Baltimore, U.S.A. She is board certified in clinical chemistry by the American Board of Clinical Chemistry and is a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Clinical Biochemistry. She holds Point-of-Care Testing (POCT) Professional Certification from the Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine. Dr. Fuezery is the North Sector POCT Medical Lead for Alberta Precision Laboratories, the sole public provider of laboratory services in the Canadian province of Alberta. In her role, she serves as the primary medical lead for POCT in the city of Edmonton and its vicinity. She also acts as a resource for general pathologists, clinical chemists, and laboratory technologists that support POCT in Northern Alberta. She has experience with a wide range of POCT devices and programs, including glucose meters, blood gas analysis, coagulation testing, urinalysis, and infectious disease testing. When not busy with clinical service, Dr. Fuezery co-directs the University of Alberta Postdoctoral Clinical Biochemistry Fellowship Program and serves on various local, national, and international committees.
Overview:
Syphilis is a highly infectious, sexually transmitted disease. Primary syphilis typically presents as a single, painless ulcer at the site of inoculation 2-6 weeks after infection. If left untreated, the infection progresses through several stages that have more severe symptoms and sequelae. Historical treatments for syphilis included guaiacum, mercury, and arsenic, but they were ineffective and/or extremely toxic. The advent of penicillin in 1943 was a turning point in disease treatment and led to a decline in syphilis cases by more than 75% in just 10 years. Rates of syphilis started increasing again in the early 2000s, and they have skyrocketed in Canada since 2017. This presentation will provide a brief history of syphilis over the centuries, followed by a discussion of the present state of syphilis screening, diagnosis, and treatment. Diagnostic testing will be discussed in detail, with a particular focus on recent developments in point-of-care testing (POCT).
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to:
- Provide a brief history of syphilis
- Describe the four stages of syphilis, their clinical signs and symptoms, and current treatment modalities
- Compare and contrast diagnostic tests available in Canada for screening, diagnosis and treatment of syphilis, including serological testing and POCT.