What Is It?
Gonorrhea
(pronounced: gah-nuh-
ree
-uh) is a
sexually transmitted disease (STD)
caused by bacteria called
Neisseria gonorrhoeae
. The bacteria can be passed from one person to another through
vaginal, oral, or anal sex, even when the person who is infected
has no symptoms. It can also be passed from a mother to her baby
during birth. You cannot catch gonorrhea from a towel, a doorknob,
or a toilet seat.
How Does a Girl Know She Has It?
A girl who has gonorrhea may have no symptoms at all or her
symptoms may be so mild that she doesn't notice them until they
become more severe. In some cases, girls will feel a burning
sensation when they urinate, or they will have a yellow-green
vaginal discharge
. Girls may also experience vaginal bleeding between menstrual
periods.
If the infection becomes more widespread and moves into the
uterus or fallopian tubes, it may result in
pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)
, which can cause abdominal pain, fever, and pain during sexual
intercourse, as well as the symptoms above.
How Does a Guy Know He Has It?
Guys who have gonorrhea are much more likely to notice symptoms,
although a guy can have gonorrhea and not know it. Guys often feel
a burning sensation when they urinate, and yellowish-white
discharge may ooze out of the urethra (at the tip of the
penis).
How Long Until There Are Symptoms?
Symptoms usually appear 2 to 7 days after a person has been
exposed to gonorrhea, and in girls they may appear even later.
What Can Happen?
Gonorrhea can be very dangerous if it is left untreated, even in
someone who has mild or no symptoms. In girls, the infection can
move into the uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries (causing PID)
and can lead to scarring and infertility (the inability to have a
baby). Gonorrhea infection during
pregnancy
can cause problems for the newborn baby, including
meningitis
(an inflammation of the membranes around the brain and spinal cord)
and an eye infection that can result in blindness if it is not
treated.
In guys, gonorrhea can spread to the epididymis (the structure
attached to the testicle that helps transport sperm), causing pain
and swelling in the testicular area. This can create scar tissue
that might make a guy infertile.
In both guys and girls, untreated gonorrhea can affect other
organs and parts of the body including the throat, eyes, heart,
brain, skin, and joints, although this is less common.
How Is It Treated?
If you think you may have gonorrhea or if you have had a partner
who may have gonorrhea, you need to see your doctor or
gynecologist
. He or she will do an exam which may include swabbing the vagina
or penis for discharge, which will then be analyzed. Sometimes
doctors can diagnose gonorrhea by testing a person's urine.
Talk to your doctor about which test is best for you. The doctor
may also test for other STDs, such as
syphilis
or
chlamydia
. Let the doctor know the best way to reach you confidentially with
any test results.
If you are diagnosed with gonorrhea, your doctor will prescribe
antibiotics to treat the infection. Anyone with whom you've had
sex should also be tested and treated for gonorrhea immediately.
This includes any sexual partners in the last 2 months, or your
last sexual partner if it has been more than 2 months since your
last sexual experience. If a sexual partner has gonorrhea, quick
treatment will reduce the risk of complications for that person and
will lower your chances of being reinfected if you have sex with
that partner again. (You can become infected with gonorrhea again
even after you have been treated because having gonorrhea does not
make you immune to it.)
It's better to prevent gonorrhea than to treat it, and the
only way to completely prevent the infection is to abstain from all
types of sexual intercourse. If you do have sex, use a
latex condom
every time. This is the only
birth control method
that will help prevent gonorrhea.
Reviewed by:
Michele Van Vranken, MD
Date reviewed: April 2006
Note: All information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice,
diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.
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