rs) who lives in an endemic area and presents with one or more of the following signs:
- painless ulcer with scab
- palmar/plantar hyperkeratosis (thickening).
The clinical diagnosis can be confirmed by examining a sample from a skin lesion under a special type of microscope (darkfield examination). There is no specific blood test for yaws, but because it is closely related to the bacterium that causes syphilis, the blood tests for syphilis are diagnostic in yaws as well.
- A single intramuscular injection of Benzathine Penicillin is curative. Relapse is very rare. The dose for adults is 1.2 million units and for children 600 000 units.
- For those who are allergic to penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin and doxycycline could be used.
Without treatment, about 10% of affected individuals would develop disfiguring and disabling complications after five years because the disease may cause gross destruction of the skin and bones. It can also cause deformities of the legs, nose, palate, and upper jaw.
There is no vaccine to prevent Yaws. The principles of prevention are based on the interruption of transmission by early diagnosis and treatment of affected individuals and their contacts.