Syphilis and axial arthropathy.

Inadequately treated syphilis predisposes the patient to the long-term complications of his disease. Neuropathic arthropathy (the Charcot joint), especially when axial or spinal, is critical to diagnosis, but is sometimes overlooked. We have reported a patient with syphilis, both neurologic and joint disease, and included the first computed tomographic views of vertebral syphilitic osteitis.