Profile of Neurosyphilis Patients Admitted to a Tertiary Care Centre of Nepal: An Observational Study

Neurosyphilis is a rare complication of untreated syphilis with limited literature. We aimed to look for demographic characters and clinical presentation of patients admitted with the diagnosis of neurosyphilis.

This was an observational cross-sectional study that included analysis of records of neurosyphilis patients admitted to the National Academy of Health Sciences, Kathmandu, Nepal, from May 2015 to April 2024. All patients diagnosed with neurosyphilis were included, while those with incomplete data were excluded. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria were used to define and categorize neurosyphilis. Continuous variables were summarized as mean ± standard deviation for normally distributed data or as median and interquartile range for skewed data. Categorical variables were described using numbers and percentages.

A total of 53 cases were included in the study, with 31 (58.49%) males. The median age was 46 years (interquartile range: 37-60 years). Decreased vision was ovserved in 30 (56.60%) patients, and redness of the eye in 11 (20.75%) and headache in 4 (7.55%). Eye signs were observed in 43 (81.13%) patients. Cerebrospinal fluid Venereal Disease Research Laboratory (VDRL) test was positive in 11 (20.75%) cases. Based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria, 11 (20.75%) patients had verified neurosyphilis, 34 (64.15%) had likely neurosyphilis, and 8 (15.09%) had possible neurosyphilis. Iintramuscular benzathine penicillin was administered in 26 (49.06%) patients.

There were more male patient with Neurosyphilis in our population. Decreased vision was the most common presentation. Likely neurosyphilis was most common diagnosis among studied population.