Gonorrhea

Gonorrhea
Gonorrhea is a common sexually transmitted disease (STD) which, if not treated early, can cause serious problems, especially for women. About 1 million American men and women contract gonorrhea each year.

Symptoms
It's possible to have gonorrhea without any symptoms. If symptoms do appear, they may include discharge from the penis or vagina, the need to urinate often, burning or pain when urinating, and in women, bleeding between monthly periods. About half of the women with gonorrhea have no symptoms.

Testing
The only way to find out whether or not you have gonorrhea is to get tested. The test is simple: the doctor takes a sample of fluid from the penis or vagina and sends it to a lab.

Treatment
Gonorrhea is treated with antibiotics. Common treatments use drugs such as ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, cefixime, ceftriaxone and most recently - azithromycin (click here for full prescribing information; download the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader free). Azithrymycin is a convenient single-dose oral medication. The most common side effects with 2-gram azithromycin include nausea (18%), diarrhea/loose stools (14%), vomiting (7%), abdominal pain (7%), vaginitis (2%), dyspepsia (1%), and dizziness (1%). Ineffective or incomplete treatment can result in serious problems later, such as chronic lower abdominal pain, sterility, tubal pregnancy, and painful joints. In order to avoid reinfection and potential transmission of infection to others, you should stop having sex until both you and your partner are cured.

Prevention
You can get and spread gonorrhea through oral, anal, and vaginal sex. Preventing gonorrhea means approaching sexual relationships responsibly: limit the number of your sex partners, use condoms, and if you think you are infected, avoid any sexual contact and visit a local STD clinic, hospital, or your doctor. Make sure both partners are treated.

To learn more about how to speak with your partner about touchy subjects like safer sex and STDs, take a look at Unspeakable.

Print this reminder (AOL 3.0 users click here) of questions you should ask your healthcare provider.

Gonorrhea: Symptoms, Treatments, Prevention

by Tracee Cornforth

According the the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), over 600,000 new cases of gonorrhea occur annually in the United States. For women this can have a particularly devastating effect on their reproductive health since women often experience no symptoms. Women who are diagnosed with gonorrhea are also often found to have chlamydia. The CDC recommends that all women with gonorrhea be treated for chlamydia as well.

Often called the clap, gonorrhea is caused by the Neisseria gonorrhea bacteria. This bacteria can be found in moist areas of the body including the vagina, penis, eyes, throat, and rectum. Infection can occur with contact to any of these areas. An infected person may also spread gonorrhea from one part of their body to another by touch. Gonorrhea can be spread through all forms of sexual activity including oral, vaginal, and rectal sex. Mothers who are infected at the time of childbirth can pass gonorrhea on to their infants.

Who gets gonorrhea?

Although any sexually active person can get gonorrhea, it is most prevalent among those from 15 to 30. Women who have vaginal intercourse with an infected man have a 60 to 90 percent chance of becoming infected; while men who have vaginal sex with and infected women have a lower 30 to 50 percent chance of becoming infected by this sexually transmitted disease.

What are the reproductive health risks to women who get gonorrhea?

"Infections due to Neisseria gonorrhoea, like those due to Chlamydia trachomatis, remain a major cause of pelvic inflammatory disease, tubal infertility, ectopic pregnancy, and chronic pelvic pain in the United States." Centers for Disease Control 1998 STD Surveillance Report

The Bartholin's glands may cause problems for women with gonorrhea. The ducts can become blocked and swell until a sore is formed. If this happens the lower area of the vulva will turn red on the infected side. If the infection is allowed to spread, untreated, it can affect the uterus with a high risk that a woman will contract pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) leading to possible future fertility problems. Men who have untreated gonorrhea risk the bacteria spreading up the urethra where it possibly affect the prostate, seminal vesicles, Cowper's glands, and the epididymis where it will form a painful sore, and fever with chills. If the epididymis is scarred men may encounter fertility problems later.

What are the symptoms of gonorrhea?

The symptoms of genital gonorrhea differ in men and women.

The cervix is primarily affected in women infected with this sexually transmitted disease; however gonorrhea can spread to the uterus and fallopian tubes if left untreated. Many women may not experience recognizable symptoms; however when symptoms do occur they can include:

• abnormal bleeding
• a burning sensation during urination
• vaginal discharge
• general irritation of the outer area of the vagina

The primary point of infection in men is most often the urethra. About one in five infected men may not experience symptoms of gonorrhea; however the majority who do have symptoms may experience:

• a yellow pus-like discharge from the tip of the penis
• stinging during urination
• frequent urination
• blood in the urine
• swelling of the glands in the groin
• the head of the penis may turn red

Other symptoms such as are pain, swelling, discharge can occur when gonorrhea affects the throat or rectum of both women and men.

What are the treatments for gonorrhea?

The CDC recommends several treatment options which include:

• Cefixime 400 mg orally in a single dose,
• Ceftriaxone 125 mg IM in a single dose,
• Ciprofloxacin 500 mg orally in a single dose,
• Ofloxacin 400 mg orally in a single dose, PLUS Azithromycin 1 g orally in a single dose,
• Doxycycline 100 mg orally twice a day for 7 days

Patients who are unable to tolerate these treatments can be offered alternative pharmaceutical treatments.

How to prevent gonorrhea and other sexually transmitted diseases...

Condoms provide your best protection against gonorrhea and other sexually transmitted diseases. Of course you have to know how to use a male condom , or you can choose to use the female condom-- just don't try using both a male and female condom at the same time. Remember, everyone who is not in a monogamous long-term relationship needs to protect themselves by practicing safe sex routinely.

What is gonorrhea?

Gonorrhea is an infection that is spread through sexual contact with another person. The gonorrhea germs are found in the mucous areas of the body (the vagina, penis, throat and rectum).

Who gets gonorrhea?

Any sexually active person can be infected with gonorrhea. Most often, gonorrhea is found in younger people (ages 15-30) who have multiple sex partners. Gonorrhea is reported more frequently from urban areas than from rural areas.

How is gonorrhea spread?

Gonorrhea is spread through sexual contact. This includes penis to vagina, penis to mouth, penis to rectum and mouth to vagina contact. Gonorrhea can also be spread from mother to child during birth.

What are the symptoms of gonorrhea?

Men infected with gonorrhea will have burning while urinating and a yellowish white discharge from the penis. Those few women with symptoms will have a discharge from the vagina and possibly some burning while urinating. Infections in the throat and rectum cause few symptoms.

How soon do symptoms appear?

In males, symptoms usually appear two to seven days after infection but it can take as long as 30 days for symptoms to begin. Often, there are no symptoms for people infected with gonorrhea; 10 to 15 percent of men and about 80 percent of women may have no symptoms. People with no symptoms are at risk for developing complications to gonorrhea. These people also spread this infection unknowingly.

When and for how long is a person able to spread gonorrhea?

From the time a person is infected with gonorrhea, he or she can spread the disease. A person can continue to spread the infection until properly treated.

Does past infection with gonorrhea make a person immune?

Past infection does not make a person immune to gonorrhea. Previous infections with gonorrhea may allow complications to occur more rapidly.

What is the treatment for gonorrhea?

Gonorrhea is treated with cephalosporin or quinalone type of antibiotics. All strains of gonorrhea are curable but some strains are becoming more and more resistant to many standard medications.

What happens if gonorrhea goes untreated??

If a person is not treated for gonorrhea, there is a good chance complications will occur. Women frequently suffer from pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) , a painful condition that occurs when the infection spreads throughout the reproductive organs. PID can lead to sterilization in females. Men may suffer from swelling of the testicles and penis. Both sexes may suffer from arthritis, skin problems and other organ infections caused by the spread of gonorrhea within the body.

What can be done to prevent the spread of gonorrhea?

Sexual relations should be approached responsibly.

• Limit the number of your sex partners.
• Use a male or female condom.
• If you think you are infected, avoid any sexual contact and visit a local sexually transmitted disease (STD) clinic, hospital or your doctor.
• Notify all sexual contacts immediately so that they can be examined and treated by a health care provider.

Gonorrhea is a common sexually transmitted disease (STD).

Gonorrhea is caused by Neisseria gonorrhoeae, a bacterium that can grow and multiply easily in mucous membranes of the body. Gonorrhea bacteria can grow in the warm, moist areas of the reproductive tract, including the cervix (opening to the womb), uterus (womb), and fallopian tubes (egg canals) in women, and in the urethra (urine canal) in women and men. The bacteria can also grow in the mouth, throat, and anus.

Gonorrhea is spread through sexual contact (vaginal, oral, or anal). This includes penis-to- vagina, penis-to-mouth, penis-to-anus, mouth-to-vagina, and mouth-to-anus contact. Ejaculation does not have to occur for gonorrhea to be transmitted or acquired. Gonorrhea can also be spread from mother to child during birth.

Gonorrhea infection can spread to other unlikely parts of the body. For example, a person can get an eye infection after touching infected genitals and then the eyes. Individuals who have had gonorrhea and received treatment may get infected again if they have sexual contact with persons infected with gonorrhea.

When initially infected, the majority of men have some signs or symptoms. Symptoms and signs include a burning sensation when urinating and a yellowish white discharge from the penis. Sometimes men with gonorrhea get painful or swollen testicles.

In women, the early symptoms of gonorrhea are often mild, and many women who are infected have no symptoms of infection. Even when a woman has symptoms, they can be so non-specific as to be mistaken for a bladder or vaginal infection. The initial symptoms and signs in women include a painful or burning sensation when urinating and a vaginal discharge that is yellow or occasionally bloody. Women with no or mild gonorrhea symptoms are still at risk of developing serious complications from the infection. Untreated gonorrhea in women can develop into pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). Please see below for more about the complications of gonorrhea.

Symptoms of rectal infection include discharge, anal itching, soreness, bleeding, and sometimes painful bowel movements. Infections in the throat cause few symptoms.

In males, symptoms usually appear 2 to 5 days after infection, but it can take as long as 30 days for symptoms to begin. Regardless of symptoms, once a person is infected with gonorrhea, he or she can spread the infection to others if condoms or other protective barriers are not used during sex.

Several laboratory tests are available to diagnose gonorrhea. A health care provider can obtain a sample of fluid from the infected mucus membrane (cervix, urethra, rectum, or throat) and send the specimen to a laboratory for analysis. Gonorrhea that is present in the male or female genital tract can be diagnosed in a laboratory by using a urine specimen from an infected person. A quick laboratory test for gonorrhea that can be done in the clinic or doctor�s office is a Gram stain. The Gram stain allows the doctor to see the gonorrhea bacteria under a microscope. This test works better for men than for women.

Many of the currently used antibiotics can successfully cure gonorrhea in adolescents and adults. Penicillin is a common antibiotic that is no longer used to treat gonorrhea, because many strains of the gonorrhea bacterium have become resistant to penicillin. Because many people with gonorrhea also have chlamydia, antibiotics for both infections are usually given together. Persons with gonorrhea should also be screened for other STDs.

It is important to take all of the medication prescribed to cure gonorrhea, even if the symptoms or signs stop before all the medication is gone. Although medication will stop the infection, it will not repair any permanent damage done by the disease. Persons who have had gonorrhea and have been treated can also get the disease again if they have sexual contact with an infected person.

Untreated gonorrhea can cause serious and permanent problems in both women and men.

In women, gonorrhea is a common cause of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). About 1 million women each year in the United States develop PID. Women with PID do not necessarily have symptoms or signs. When symptoms or signs are present, they can be very severe and can include strong abdominal pain and fever. PID can lead to internal abscesses (pus pockets that are hard to cure), long-lasting pelvic pain, and infertility. PID can cause infertility or damage the fallopian tubes (egg canals) enough to increase the risk of ectopic pregnancy. Ectopic pregnancy is a life-threatening condition in which a fertilized egg grows outside the uterus, usually in a fallopian tube.

In men, gonorrhea can cause epididymitis, a painful condition of the testicles that can sometimes lead to infertility if left untreated. Without prompt treatment, gonorrhea can also affect the prostate and can lead to scarring inside the urethra, making urination difficult.

Gonorrhea can spread to the blood or joints. This condition can be life-threatening. Also, persons with gonorrhea can more easily contract HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Persons with HIV infection and gonorrhea are more likely than persons with HIV infection alone to transmit HIV to someone else.

If a pregnant woman has gonorrhea, she may give the infection to her infant as the baby passes through the birth canal during delivery. This can cause blindness, joint infection, or a life-threatening blood infection in the baby. Treatment of gonorrhea as soon as it is detected in pregnant women will lessen the risk of these complications. Pregnant women should consult a health care provider for appropriate medications.

Use latex condoms correctly every time you have sex.

Persons who choose to engage in sexual behaviors that can place them at risk for STDs should use latex condoms every time they have sex. A condom put on the penis before starting sex and worn until the penis is withdrawn can help protect both the male and the female partner from gonorrhea. When a male condom cannot be used appropriately, sex partners should consider using a female condom.

Condoms do not provide complete protection from all STDs. Sores and lesions of other STDs on infected men and women may be present in areas not covered by the condom, resulting in transmission of infection to another person.

Limit the number of sex partners, and do not go back and forth between partners.

Practice sexual abstinence, or limit sexual contact to one uninfected partner.

Any genital symptoms such as discharge or burning during urination or unusual sore or rash should be a signal to stop having sex and to consult a health care provider immediately. If you are told you have gonorrhea or any other STD and receive treatment, you should notify all of your recent sex partners so that they can see a health care provider and be treated. This will reduce the risk that your partners will develop serious complications from gonorrhea and will reduce your own risk of becoming reinfected.

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