Gonorrhea Mario Nastasi

What is it?  Sexually Transmitted Infection.  Caused by Neisseria Gonorrhoeae, a bacterium that can grow and multiply easily in mucus membranes of the body.  Can grow in the warm, moist areas of the reproductive tract, including the cervix, uterus, and fallopian tubes in women, and in the urethra in women and men.  Can also grow in the mouth, throat, and anus.  A.K.A the “clap” or “drip”

How is it Spread?  Most often through sexual contact with an infected person.  May also be spread by contact with infected bodily fluids, so that a mother could pass on the infection to her newborn during childbirth.  The infection is easily spread and occurs most often in people who have many sex partners.

How Common is Gonorrhea?  Very common in the U.S.  According to the CDC, there are as many as 700,000 new cases, with less than half of them reported.  There were 334,826 reported cases of gonorrhea in the U.S. in  Sexually active teenagers have one of the highest rates of reported infections.

Symptoms  Not all people infected have symptoms.  When symptoms do occur, they are often within two to 10 days after exposure, but they can take up to 30 days to develop. Symptoms for women: Greenish yellow or whitish discharge from the vagina. Burning when urinating. Bleeding between periods. Lower abdominal or pelvic pain. Symptoms for men: Greenish yellow or whitish discharge from the penis. Burning when urinating. Painful or swollen testicle.

Treatments  Either an oral or injectable antibiotic.  Partner should also be treated at the same time.  Patients infected with gonorrhoeae frequently are coinfected with trachomatis. Dual therapy is recommended.  Always take all of your antibiotics, even if you’re feeling better.  It is becoming harder to treat some gonorrhea, as drug-resistant strains of gonorrhea are increasing.

If Untreated  Can cause serious and permanent health problems in both women and men.  Spread to your blood or joints (life-threatening)  Increased risk of HIV.  Men:  Can cause a painful condition in the tubes attached to the testicles.  In rare cases, can cause men to be sterile.  Women:  Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID)  Formation of scar tissue that blocks fallopian tubes.  Infertility  Long-term pelvic/abdominal pain.

Prevention  Condoms/Safe sex.  Limit number of sex partners.  Abstinence