The Tuskegee Study for

Untreated Syphilis
Cheryse Jackson, RN
Angela Long, RN
Monique Veney, RN
Uche Fabiku, RN

Syphilis
Highly contagious sexually transmitted disease
Transmitted by the bacterium Treponema Pallidum
Syphilis infection has 3 stages (primary, secondary
and late stage)

The Tuskegee Syphilis

experiment
40-year race-based medical experiment conducted from 1932
to 1972 by the US Public health Service and the Tuskegee
institute
Study aimed at examining how second-stage syphilis would
affect African-American men to compare to Caucasian men.
400 impoverished sharecroppers manipulated
1973, awarding the survivors over $10 million to the survivors
and their families

Treatment of Syphilis
In 1940, Penicillin became the treatment for syphilis
and in 1950 became the gold standard treatment
A single dose of Penicillin G is given intramuscular to
treat the infection if infected for less than a year.
If infected for more than a year or for an unknown
period of time, Penicillin is given weekly for 3 weeks
Doxycycline or Tetracycline is administered to those
allergic to Penicillin
If left untreated, syphilis can cause permanent health
problems such as blindness, dementia or even death.

Review of Literature
Tuskegee Experiment
Misconduct
Impact

Review of literature
Hastings Center Report (1978)
-Revealed mindset of researchers and government officials
regarding human nature of blacks
a primitive peoples [that] could not be assimilated into a complex, white
civilization. Researchers and medical professional made an argument that based
on
scientific physical findings a careful inspection reveals the body of the negro a mass of minor
defects and imperfections from the crown of the head to the soles
of the feet....Cranial
structures, wide nasal apertures, receding chins,
projecting jaws, all aped the Negro as the
lowest species in the Darwinian hierarchy

-Exposed communication between researchers and

U.S.P.H.S.

related to study details

there is one danger in the latter plan and that is if the colored population became
aware that accepting free hospital care means post-mortem, every darkey will leave Macon
county and it will hurt [Dr. Eugene] Dibbles hospital.

Exploration and Analysis

Subjects were coerced/manipulated into the study
Subjects were never told they had syphilis
Subjects were never treated
Subjects were told they were being treated for bad
blood (CDC, 2013)
Subjects were never given informed consent
Subjects were never given the option to quit even after
the introduction of Penicillin as a treatment/cure
Victims included the participants, their wives and many
children born with congenital defects

Exploration and Analysis

In 1974 the National Research Act, the Common Rule was
passed which mandates that IRBs or institutional review
boards be established at all facilities that receive federal
research dollars
1979 Belmont Report
1979 Establishment of the Office for Human Research
(OHRP)
In 1993 the NIH Revitalization Act was developed to
mandate the inclusion of women and minorities in
research which has had very limited success, this
government policy was suppose to increase the
representation of women and minorities in research

Exploration and Analysis

In 2011 the US Department of Health and
Human Services was unsuccessful yet again in
establishing another policy called 2011
Advanced Notice of Proposed Rule making
which was also to address the
underrepresentation of African Americans and
other minorities

Conclusion
The Tuskegee experiment was known for one
of the most non-therapeutic study in the
United States
Resulted in a decrease in trust of researchers
from African Americans
Caused hundreds of death, infected wives and
children born with congenital syphilis.

References
Beauchamp, T., & Childress, J. (2013). Principles of Biomedical Ethics (7th Ed.). New York: Oxford University
Press.
Brandt, A. M. (1978). Racism and research: The case of the Tuskegee Syphilis study. Retrieved from The
Hastings Center: http://www.med.navy.mil/bumed/Documents/Healthcare%20Ethics/Racism-And-Research.pdf
Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2014). Syphilis- CDC fact sheet. [Online]. Retrieved from
http://www.cdc.gov/std/syphilis/STDFact-Syphilis.htm
Gray, Fred. (1998). The Tuskegee syphilis study. Montgomery: New South Books
Heintzelman, C. (2013). The Tuskegee Syphilis Study and its Implications for the 21st Century. Social Worker ,
pp. 2-8.
Medline Plus. (2014). Syphilis. [Online]. Retrieved from
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000861.htm
Poythress, N., Epstein, M., Stiles, P.,& Edens, J. F. (2011). Awareness of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study: Impact on
Offenders' Decisions to Decline Research Participation. Behavioral Sciences& The Law, 29(6), 821-828.
doi:10.1002/bsl.1012
Smolin, D. M. (2012). THE TUSKEGEE SYPHILIS EXPERIMENT, SOCIAL CHANGE, AND THE FUTURE OF BIOETHICS.
Faulkner Law Review, 3(2), 229-251.
Walker, C. A. (2009, Summer2009). Lest we forget: The Tuskegee Experiment. Journal of Theory Construction &
Testing. pp. 5-6.
William Rencher, L. W. (2013, December). Redressing Past Wrongs: Changing the Common Rule to Increase
Minority Voices in Research. Public Health Ethics , pp. 2136-2140.