A man who has a penile chancre appears in a hospital’s emergency service. The VDRL test is negative. The most appropriate course of action for the physician in charge would be to
Correct Answer: Perform dark-field microscopy for treponemes
Description: In men, the appearance of a hard chancre on the penis characteristically indicates syphilis. Even though the chancre does not appear until the infection is 2 or more weeks old, the VDRL test for syphilis still can be negative despite the presence of a chancre (the VDRL test may not become positive for 2 or 3 weeks after initial infection). However, a lesion suspected of being a primary syphilitic ulcer should be examined by dark-field microscopy, which can reveal motile treponemes.
Category:
Microbiology
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