Congenital syphilis. Diagnosis in places with limited facilities

The cases of 4 newborns with congenital syphilis (CS) seen in a rural hospital in Tanzania are reported. Clinical signs may be caused by other diseases than CS and are not conclusive. Therefore, uniformity in diagnostic criteria based on clinical symptoms and serology is essential for comparative clinical and epidemiological studies in places with limited facilities. The surveillance case definition for congenital syphilis introduced by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in 1988 and revised in 1989 [1] offers the opportunity to report congenital syphilis not only in places with sophisticated equipment but also in places with limited facilities.