What is gonorrhea?

Gonorrhea, also known as the clap or g.c., is a common sexually transmitted disease (STD). The disease can affect all parts of the body, although it usually shows up first in the genital areas.

How does it occur?

Gonorrhea is caused by bacteria and is highly contagious. The bacteria can enter the body through any body opening (mouth, vagina, rectum).

Gonorrhea is most frequently transmitted through sexual intercourse. In men, the infection usually starts as an infection of the urethra (the tube that urine passes through). In women, the bacteria usually first infect the cervix (opening of the uterus). The bacteria can infect the throat and rectum after oral and anal sex.

A baby can be infected during childbirth if the mother has gonorrhea. When the baby passes through the birth canal, the bacteria can get into and infect the baby's eyes.

What are the symptoms?

You can have gonorrhea without having any obvious symptoms. When symptoms do exist, they usually appear within 2 to 10 days after infection. Symptoms may include:

• burning sensation or pain while urinating

• urge to urinate frequently

• cloudy, thick discharge from the penis

• cloudy, yellow vaginal discharge, which may have a foul odor

• stomach pain (in women)

• abnormal menstrual bleeding

• inflamed anus or rectum (after anal intercourse)

• sore throat (after oral sex)

• pain in the scrotum or testicle.

If a baby gets gonorrhea during childbirth, one or both of the baby's eyes are severely inflamed.

How is it diagnosed?

Many disorders and sexually transmitted diseases can cause symptoms similar to gonorrhea. To confirm that you have gonorrhea, the health care provider tests a sample of discharge from the urethra of the penis or from the cervix. Urine can also be tested with a new test called LCR.

How is it treated?

Gonorrhea is treated with antibiotic drugs, given either by mouth or as a shot. Because many people with gonorrhea also have chlamydia (another sexually transmitted disease), you will usually be given more than one drug to cure both diseases. If you are allergic to penicillin, tell your health care provider.

How long will the effects last?

The effects depend on how long you have had gonorrhea, how much the infection has spread, and if you have had gonorrhea before.

In men, if only the urethra is infected, the gonorrhea will clear up about 2 days after treatment is started. However, even though the symptoms may be gone, oral medication must be taken for the full time prescribed. Without treatment, the urethra may become scarred, and a man may not be able to urinate normally and may become sterile (unable to conceive children).

In women, if only the cervix is infected, the gonorrhea will clear up about 2 days after treatment is started. However, even though the symptoms may be gone, oral medication must be taken for the full time prescribed. Without treatment, the bacteria can spread into the uterus and to the ovaries and fallopian tubes, possibly causing sterility and pelvic inflammatory disease (infection in the tubes). The risk of ectopic (tubal) pregnancy caused by this scarring also becomes greater.

If the bacteria get into the bloodstream, multiply, and spread, gonorrhea can lead to arthritis, fever, meningitis, and death.

How can I take care of myself?

Make sure you return for a follow-up exam in 1 to 2 weeks so your health care provider can make sure that all of the gonorrhea bacteria are gone. You should also:

• Take your medicine for as long as it is prescribed, even if your symptoms are gone before you have finished taking the medication.

• Stop having sexual relations until your provider tells you that all evidence of the disease is gone.

What can be done to help prevent gonorrhea and its complications?

It is important to tell your sexual partner(s) that they have been exposed to gonorrhea. You must also:

• Reduce the risk of infection by always using condoms during foreplay and sexual intercourse.

• Not share towels or intimate personal items that might carry bacteria.

Even if you don't have symptoms but have had unprotected sex (without a condom), see your local health care provider or clinic to be checked for gonorrhea and other STDs.