Genital ulcer disease in Ilorin, Nigeria

Abstract

This is a review of 32 consecutive cases of patients with genital ulcers or who were repeatedly reactive to serological tests for syphilis (STS) at the Venereology Clinic of the University Teaching Hospital, Ilorin, Nigeria, between January 1993 and April 1995. The criteria for diagnosis of the various conditions included the history, clinical presentation and the results of laboratory investigations. The commonest cause of genital ulcers was chancroid, accounting for 6(18.7%) of the 32 cases. Other common causes were lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV), gential herpes and primary syphilis, each acounting for 12.5 percent of the cases. An unusual presentation of oro-genital aphthosis, with hyperkeratosis and paraesthesia of a localized area on the palm, in addition to the usual genital and oral lesions was reported. Also reported were cases of perigenital cutaneous onchocerciasis and a case of leprosy presenting as chronic biological false positive (BFP) to STS. Patients with chancroid responded favourably to treatment with ceftriaxone (Rocephin) and so was the hyperkeratosis of oro-gential aphthosis to topical treatment with flumethasone pivalate/salicylic acid ointment (Locasalen). The importance of histological technique for making the diagnosis of some tropical conditions affecting the genitals was highlighted, and the exercise of caution in interpreting the results of STS was advocated.


(Af. J. of Clinical and Experimental Microbiology: 2002 3(1): 21-23)