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Are gummas in late syphilis infectious?

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Scanning electron micrograph of Treponema pallidum, the spirochete bacterium that is the causative agent of syphilis. — syphilis Scanning electron micrograph of *Treponema pallidum*, the spirochete bacterium that is the causative agent of syphilis.

No, gummas are not infectious. These ulcerated lesions, which appear during the late or tertiary stage of syphilis, are considered a form of benign late syphilis because they typically do not endanger the patient's life and do not transmit the infection to others.1

In contrast, the primary and secondary stages of the disease are highly infectious, as the spirochetes are easily passed to other people through contact with open sores or rashes.1