What Is Your Diagnosis? Secondary Syphilis

A 44-year-old man who was human immunodeficiency virus positive presented with a generalized pruritic eruption of 1 week’s duration. He denied prodromal symptoms such as fever, chills, headache, or meningismus. The current viral load was undetectable. A rapid plasma reagin test conducted 3 months prior to the cutaneous eruption was negative. Physical examination revealed multiple erythematous papules and thin scaly plaques involving the face, trunk, and proximal extremities, with sparing of the palms and soles. There were no genital, oral, or ocular lesions.