SE101: STDs: Gonorrhea

Cause: Neisseria Gonorrhoeae

What is gonorrhea?

Gonorrhea is an infection that is transmitted through close physical contact during sexual intercourse. It can also be transmitted through oral and anal sex as well as vaginal.

What are the symptoms of gonorrhea?

A person who has been infected with gonorrhea will start seeing symptoms within 2 to 21 days after being infected; however, most women and many men report no symptoms at all.

Men	Women
Burning/pain when urinating need to urinate more often thick yellow to white discharge from the penis	Thick yellow to white discharge from the vagina Bleeding between periods or abnormal periods Burning/pain when urinating or have a bowel movement Lower abdominal cramping and/or lower back pain

How can you test for gonorrhea?

A doctor or nurse practitioner will take a sample of the discharge from the man’s urethra (urinary tract) or the woman’s cervix (opening to the uterus) during an exam. The sample will be sent to a lab and tested for the organism that causes gonorrhea.

Can gonorrhea be treated and cured?

Yes, a person can be treated for gonorrhea with antibiotics and be completely cured of the infection. This person’s partners must also be treated to ensure that the infection wont be passed back and forth.

What if gonorrhea is not treated?

If gonorrhea is not treated it can spread into the pelvic organs and cavity causing pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). PID can cause scarring and permanent damage to the pelvic organs. If PID goes untreated it can cause infertility in men and women.

How can gonorrhea transmission be prevented?

No method is completely foolproof. People who have only one sexual partner are the least likely to get gonorrhea. If you do have more than one partner, or are unsure if your partner may have more than one partner, it is very important to use condoms. It should be noted, however, that condoms cannot protect areas they do not cover. For example: the groin area, the upper thighs and the abdomen.