Congenital syphilis screening

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Aditya Govindavarjhulla, M.B.B.S. [2] Aravind Kuchkuntla, M.B.B.S[3]

Overview

Routine screening of newborn serum or umbilical cord blood is not recommended. Serologic testing of the mother’s serum is preferred rather than testing the infant’s serum.

Screening

Effective prevention and detection of congenital syphilis depends on the identification of syphilis in pregnant women and screening is a key component to decrease the incidence of congenital syphilis. The recommendations for screening are as follows:

	Screening Recommendations
Timing of Screening	Test all pregnant women at the first prenatal visit.
Screening Tests	Nontreponemal tests commonly used for initial screening include: Venereal Disease Research Laboratory (VDRL) Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) Confirmatory tests include: Fluorescent treponemal antibody absorbed (FTA-ABS) Treponema pallidum particle agglutination (TPPA)
High Risk Population	Most organizations recommend testing high-risk women again during the third trimester and at delivery. Groups at increased risk include: Uninsured women Women living in poverty Sex workers Illicit drug users Those diagnosed with other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) Other women living in communities with high syphilis morbidity