A 7 weeks baby girl was brought into the hospital with a rash on hands and feet,

Question

A 7 weeks baby girl was brought into the hospital with a rash on hands and feet, fever, cough and high WBC count. The baby was premature 35 weeks at a weight of 2.97kg. She was treated with Penicillin G for 14 days & testing after that showed the treatment was successful. The parents were treated too.

1. What infection does she have and how would you identify the sources and why?

2. Name the causative agent and what are the virulence factors for it?

3. What type of testing would you use to make sure of your diagnosis?

4. At what stage of the infection is she, and why? Explain the microbial and the immune response.

5. Why penicillin like antibiotics is effective and how does that relate to the virulence factors for the pathogen?

Explanation / Answer

1. She was suffering from congenital syphilis.
She contracted the disease from the mother during pregnancy. Blood containing the bacteria reached the fetus through the placenta, the organthrough which nourishment reaches the body.

2. The causative agent is the bacterium Treponema pallidum. It has small genome and lacks genes for virulence factors. It can however survive in untreated host for long periods.

3. The following testing is done-

4. She was at the secondary stage of the infection since infants born with syphilis have no symptoms of the disease. Almost all infants develop symptoms by three months of age. The primary stage symptoms include a chancre at the point where the bacterium entered alongwith enlarged lymph nodes at the groin.

5. Administered at optimum level, penicillin can kill the pathogen in a few hours and it remains the single most effective treatment against syphillis.

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