Abstract
A 32-year-old male complaining of a swelling sensation on the right side of his throat, which was diagnosed as secondary pharyngeal syphilis, was presented. Physical examination revealed that the mucous membrane on the right mesopharynx was erosive with a whitish coating, and the right tonsil was slightly swollen. Bilateral submandibular and inguinal lymph nodes were swollen, but no cutaneous manifestations typical of syphilis were observed. His general condition was good. Serological testing showed high TPHA titers and histopathological examination of pharyngeal tissue revealed abundant treponema pallida. The patient was treated with oral penicillin and the swelling sensation and the erosive lesion soon disappeared. Recently, a gradual increase in the incidence of latent or untypical syphilis has been observed, and otorhinolaryngologists should be alert to the possibility of primary oropharyngeal lesions, resulting from sexually transmitted deseases.
