ACQUIRED SYPHILIS
In the vast majority of cases, infection takes place during the congress
of the sexes. Delicate, easily abraded surfaces are then brought into
contact, and the discharge from lesions containing the virus is placed
under favourable conditions for conveying the disease from one person to
the other. In the male the possibility of infection taking place is
increased if the virus is retained under cover of a long and tight
prepuce, and if there are abrasions on the surface with which it comes
in contact. The frequency with which infection takes place on the
genitals during sexual intercourse warrants syphilis being considered a
venereal disease, although there are other ways in which it may be
contracted.
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