page_title: Syphilis
section_title: Tuskegee and Guatemala studies
hierarchical_section_title: Syphilis / History / Tuskegee and Guatemala studies
caption_attribution_description: Nederlands: ==Summary== anonymous: The discovery of Guaicum as a cure for veneral infection &#160;&#160;&#160;Artist anonymousDesigner Stradanus &#160;(1523&#8211;1605)&#160;&#160;Alternative names Jan van der Straet, Giovanni della Strada, Johannes della Strada, Giovanni Stradano, Johannes Stradano, Giovanni Stradanus, Johannes Stradanus, Jan van Straeten, Jan van StratenDescriptionFlemish painter and draughtsmanDate of birth/death 1523&#160; 2 November 1605&#160;Location of birth/death Bruges FlorenceWork location Antwerp (1545), Florence (circa 1550-1605), Rome (circa 1550-1553), Montemurlo (1590)Authority control : Q143595 VIAF:&#8201;29699451 ISNI:&#8201;0000 0000 8108 906X ULAN:&#8201;500011304 LCCN:&#8201;n84804240 NLA:&#8201;35875335 WorldCat creator QS:P170,Q143595 Title De ontdekking van Guaiacum als middel tegen syfilisPublisher Jan Galle&#160;Object type engraving&#160;Description Gravure (http://vocab.getty.edu/aat/300041340 ), anoniem, Museum Plantin-MoretusMedium gravureCollection Museum Plantin-Moretus &#160;&#160;Native nameMuseum Plantin-MoretusLocationAntwerpCoordinates51°&#160;13′&#160;05.86″&#160;N, 4°&#160;23′&#160;53.39″&#160;E &#160;Established1877&#160;Web pagehttp://www.museumplantinmoretus.be/Authority control : Q595802 VIAF:&#8201;130668175 ISNI:&#8201;0000 0001 2285 9666 LCCN:&#8201;n50051109 UNESCO:&#8201;1185 GND:&#8201;1007736-4 WorldCat institution QS:P195,Q595802Accession number PK OPB 0186 007References described at URL: http://dams.antwerpen.be/asset/y1XTPSlEUiOSdiXNSbztpr0p&#160;Source/Photographer Museum Plantin-Moretus &#160;&#160;Native nameMuseum Plantin-MoretusLocationAntwerpCoordinates51°&#160;13′&#160;05.86″&#160;N, 4°&#160;23′&#160;53.39″&#160;E &#160;Established1877&#160;Web pagehttp://www.museumplantinmoretus.be/Authority control : Q595802 VIAF:&#8201;130668175 ISNI:&#8201;0000 0001 2285 9666 LCCN:&#8201;n50051109 UNESCO:&#8201;1185 GND:&#8201;1007736-4 WorldCat institution QS:P195,Q595802Permission(Reusing this file) &#160; This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. The person who associated a work with this deed has dedicated the work to the public domain by waiving all of their rights to the work worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law. You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Gravure (http://vocab.getty.edu/aat/300041340 ), anoniem, Museum Plantin-Moretus
context_page_description: Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The signs and symptoms of syphilis vary depending in which of the four stages it presents. The primary stage classically presents with a single chancre though there may be multiple sores. In secondary syphilis, a diffuse rash occurs, which frequently involves the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. There may also be sores in the mouth or vagina. In latent syphilis, which can last for years, there are few or no symptoms. In tertiary syphilis, there are gummas, neurological problems, or heart symptoms. Syphilis has been known as "the great imitator" as it may cause symptoms similar to many other diseases.
  Syphilis is most commonly spread through sexual activity. It may also be transmitted from mother to baby during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis. Other diseases caused by the Treponema bacteria include yaws, pinta, and nonvenereal endemic syphilis. These three diseases are not typically sexually transmitted. Diagnosis is usually made by using blood tests; the bacteria can also be detected using dark field microscopy.
context_section_description: The "Tuskegee Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male"  was an infamous, unethical, and racist clinical study conducted between 1932 and 1972 by the U.S. Public Health Service. Whereas the purpose of this study was to observe the natural history of untreated syphilis; the African-American men in the study were told they were receiving free treatment for "bad blood" from the United States government.
  The Public Health Service started working on this study in 1932 in collaboration with Tuskegee University, a historically black college in Alabama. Researchers enrolled 600 poor, African-American sharecroppers from Macon County, Alabama in the study. Of these men, 399 had contracted syphilis before the study began, and 201 did not have the disease. Medical care, hot meals, and free burial insurance were given to those who participated. The men were told that the study would last six months, but in the end it continued for 40 years. After funding for treatment was lost, the study was continued without informing the men that they were only being studied and would not be treated. Facing insufficient participation, the Macon County Health Department nevertheless wrote to subjects to offer them a "last chance" to get a special "treatment", which was not a treatment at all, but a spinal tap administered exclusively for diagnostic purposes. None of the men infected were ever told that they had the disease, and none were treated with penicillin even after the antibiotic had been proven to successfully treat syphilis. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the men were told they were being treated for "bad blood"—a colloquialism describing various conditions such as fatigue, anemia, and syphilis—which was a leading cause of death among southern African-American men.
  The 40-year study became a textbook example of poor medical ethics because researchers had knowingly withheld treatment with penicillin and because the subjects had been misled concerning the purposes of the study. The revelation in 1972 of these study failures by a whistleblower, Peter Buxtun, led to major changes in U.S. law and regulation on the protection of participants in clinical studies. Now studies require informed consent, communication of diagnosis, and accurate reporting of test results.
  Similar experiments were carried out in Guatemala from 1946 to 1948. It was done during the administration of American President Harry S. Truman and Guatemalan President Juan José Arévalo with the cooperation of some Guatemalan health ministries and officials. Doctors infected soldiers, prostitutes, prisoners and mental patients with syphilis and other sexually transmitted diseases, without the informed consent of the subjects, and treated most subjects with antibiotics. The experiment resulted in at least 83 deaths. In October 2010, the U.S. formally apologized to Guatemala for the ethical violations that took place. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius stated "Although these events occurred more than 64 years ago, we are outraged that such reprehensible research could have occurred under the guise of public health. We deeply regret that it happened, and we apologize to all the individuals who were affected by such abhorrent research practices." The experiments were led by physician John Charles Cutler who also participated in the late stages of the Tuskegee syphilis experiment.
caption: Preparation and Use of Guayaco for Treating Syphilis, after Stradanus, 1590
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