Table 1.
Participant characteristics
| Characteristic | Neurosyphilis Cases (n=35) | Syphilis Controls (n=36) | P-values |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | 35 (100%) | 36 (100%) | N/A |
| Age | 39 (33–47) | 39 (31–44) | 0.203 |
| PLWH | 25 (72%) | 27 (75%) | 0.943 |
| Syphilis stage | |||
| Primary | 1 (3%) | 1 (3%) | 0.834 |
| Secondary | 16 (46%) | 15 (42%) | |
| Early latent | 9 (26%) | 13 (36%) | |
| Late latent | 9 (26%) | 7 (19%) | |
| Serum RPR titer | 1:256 (1:64–1:512) | 1:128 (1:64–1:256) | 0.140 |
| CSF WBC/μl | 67 (42–131) | 2 (2–4) | <0.001 |
| CSF-VDRL titer | 2 (2–8) | 0 (0–0) | <0.001 |
| CSF-FTA-ABS reactive | 32 (100%)a | 8 (44%)a | <0.001 |
| T pallidum detected in CSF by RT-PCR | 20 (57%) | 3 (8%) | <0.001 |
Results are expressed as number (n), percent (%) or median (interquartile range)
a
CSF-FTA-ABS results were available for 32 case samples and 18 control samples
*
CSF=cerebrospinal fluid; FTA-ABS=fluorescent treponemal antibody absorption; PLWH=people living with HIV; RPR=rapid plasma reagin; RT-PCR, reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction; VDRL=venereal diseases research laboratory test; WBC=white blood cells