What is gonorrhea? Is it a sexually transmitted infection?
There are many sexually transmitted infections such as Chlamydia, HIV/AIDS,Trichomonas vaginalis, etc. caused by various pathogens and transmitted via the sexual contact or coming in contact with the secretions or bodily fluids. One such known infection is gonorrhoea.
Gonorrhea is a common sexually transmitted infection caused by a bacteria Neisseria Gonorrheae that spreads through genitals,mouth or anus.
It is classified as a STD due to its transmission mainly via the sexual contact.
It can be found in both men and women. Women are however affected more than men.
Gonorrhea can be one of the cause of infertility in couples if it is untreated at it's earliest.
Gonorrhea may or may not show symptoms sometimes and the affected people may continue to transmit the infection by having unprotected sex by vaginal, oral or anal route.
An infected woman may pass gonorrhea infection to her baby during childbirth or during the nursing or lactating period via breast milk.
Gonorrhea infection may get transmitted to eyes causing gonococcal conjunctivitis if the infection by contaminated hands or licking eyes via saliva.
Gonorrhea is commonly found in reproductive age group below 25 years,although it can be found in both genders and people in their reproductive ages.
If left untreated it may create complications like spread to the pelvis, joints, or even heart. Pelvic inflammatory disease is a common known complication of STIs.
Who are at high risk of gettting infected with gonorrhea?
The high risk group people who are:
- Sexually active teenagers engaged in unprotected sex
- People in their reproductive ages who are already infected with some other STD like Chlamydia.
- Having intercourse with multiple partners
- Having sex with infected partner
- Excessive vaginal douching which may cause loss of good bacteria from vagina and lincrease the susceptibility to other infections.
- Having unprotected vaginal, oral or anal sex.
The screening of the partners involved in intercourse may help to detect gonorhhea early and prevent any further transmission of infection onto other persons.
What are the symptoms of gonorrhoea in women?
Once infection enters the body by any of the above said means the symptoms mag start to appear from 7- 15 days or even after 30 days.
Following symptoms of gonorrhea can be seen in women :
- Unusual purulent or yellowish vaginal discharge
- Burning urination
- Pain while urinating
- Lower abdomen pain
- Pelvic discomfort and pain
- Pain during intercourse
- Inter-menstrual cycle bleeding
- Sore throat
- Vaginal or rectal itching
- There may be soreness around the anal area and it may be painful while defecation.
What are the signs and symptoms of gonorrhea in men?
Many men do not show any symptoms at all. Even if they have some mild symptoms, there are chances of it being ignored or gone unnoticed.
The men who are symptomatic may have symptoms like:
- Painful micturition
- Urethral irritation and pain
- Pain during or after sex
- Unusual discharge from the tip of the penis that may appear to be drooling quite often
- Thin white greenish or yellow discharge from penis
- Presence of sore throat
What are the causes of gonorrhea?
Gonorrhea is caused when bacteria enters the body through vagina, penis, anus or mouth. The bacteria responsible for causing gonorrhea infection is Neisseria Gonorrheae, from gonococci family.
What are the major risk factors of gonorrhea?
- Unprotected sex
- Improper gential hygiene
- Too much vaginal douching
- Changing sex partners
- Having sex with more than one partner
- Lack of knowledge regarding STIs
- Ignorance of symptoms and delayed screening
How does gonorrhea spread from one person to another?
Gonorrhea is a highly infectious disease that spreads by having unprotected intercourse with a person ready infected with the bacteria.
It can spread rapidly from one infected person to another by sexual contact.
Casual kissing or hugging or shaking hands do not cause to its spread.
Some infected females or males do not show any symptoms of gonorrhea at all. They act as carrier of infection. When they engage in sexual activity without protection, it can speead to their partners and infect them with the same.
A female who gets infected perinatally may transmit the Gonorrheae infection to her baby either during childbirth or thereafter.
Infection to eyes is known to spread through contact with the infected bodily secretions, it may even be a cause of blindness in infants.
How is the diagnosis of gonorrhea made?Or How do you know if you have gonorrhea?
Gonorrhea symptoms are often seen similar to other STD s and it's only your doctor who can differentiate this as gonorhea.
Diagnosis can be made based on:
- Physical assessment of symptoms and data collection through history taking, especially sexual history
- Blood cultures to detect the infection
- Urine test to rule out the presence of bacteria and pus cells.
- Serological tests
- Per vaginal and per rectal examinations in females
- Examination of penis in males
How can be gonorhea treated?
Gonorrhea is a bacterial infection and it can be treated promptly with the use of antibiotics as prescribed by the doctor.
Initial screening may be only of person showing symptoms of gonorrhea but once, the infection is confirmed the art er also must undergo thorough screening and evaluation.
Most often the partners who came in contact are treated simultaneously to avoid any further spread of infection.
The treatment usually focuses to stop the spread of infection to other areas of body by inhibiting the bacterial growth. For this antibiotics are prescribed.
Can gonorrhea be cured?
Thorough screening and diagnosis are the first steps to cure the infection.
Immediately after the diagnosis is made, the infecteda person must take the prescribed full course of treatment without skipping any medicines.
- Get her/his partner screened for gonorrhea and initiate their treatment as well.
- All those who came in sexual contact with in last three months must be ideally informed about the infection and convinced to get themselves screened for the infection.
- Avoiding any sort of sexual activity for the duration of treatment course.
- Resuming the sexual activity only in doctors recommendation and infecion-free status. It may be anywhere between a week to two weeks after successful completion of treatment.
- Most people can live their life normally after getting promot treatment of gonorrhea and taking further necessary steps to avoid any future infection.
How can we prevent ourselves from gonorhea infection?
Gonorhea can be prevented by keeping some of the measures in mind-
Top 10 preventive measures to save yourself from contracting gonorrhea:
- Always have protected sex.
- Be faithful. Have only one partner, if possible. (Rest is your decision! No excuses)
- Avoid having multiple partners.
- If engage with multiple sex, be sure to get yourself screened periodically for any Sexually transmitted infections.
- Keep yourself informed about the common symptoms of STIs and see your doctor if you notice any unusual change in your body.
- Avoid vaginal douching. It can change the healthy wnciriy and pH of vagina making you susceptible to various infection.
- Always maintain perineal hygiene
- During pregnancy if you notice any such symptoms, inform your OBG and seek her advice and get start getting regular treatment to avoid contracting infection to your baby.
- Encourage use of condoms and dental dams to keep yourself and your partner safe from any sexually transmitted infections.
- Educate yourself and your partners as well as others by sharing knowledge across various community, clubs and groups to prevent the spread of such infections and stay sexually healthy.
Just like othe bacterial infections that are sexually transmitted, treatment and cure of gonorrhea is possible. Prompt treatment at earliest helps your recover soon from the infection.
Note: This post is for informational and educational purpose only, It is not a substitute to any medical or professional advice or treatment. See your doctor in any case.
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