Gonorrhoea - Symptoms, Risk, Diagnosis and Treatment
The number of people suffering from sexually transmitted infections has been increasing at an alarming rate. The sexually transmitted infections experienced by men and women can either be bacterial or viral in nature. You can contract such STIs through unprotected sexual contact with an infected partner. Gonorrhoea is one of the most commonly experienced sexually transmitted infections, second only to chlamydia. It usually affects men who are between 20 to 24 years old and women who are between 16 to 19 years old. This bacterial infection is caused by a bacterium which is known as the Neisseria gonorrhoeae.
What are the symptoms of gonorrhoea?
The general symptoms of gonorrhoea experienced by people include itching, rashes, bleeding, discharge and painful bowel movements. Men who are infected with this bacterium, can experience symptoms such as a burning sensation while urinating, coloured discharge from the penis, and swollen or painful testicles. It has been observed that men usually experience the symptoms around 2 to 5 days after getting infected. The symptoms for gonorrhoea experienced by women include a painful or burning sensation while urinating, vaginal bleeding between periods and increased vaginal discharge. The symptoms that are experienced by women are usually less aggressive than that of men, and there is also a probability that they do not experience any symptoms at all.
What are the risk factors of this infection?
Gonorrhoea like other bacterial infections, if left untreated, can prove to be very harmful for you. If this infection is left untreated, then it can prove life threatening if it spreads in to your blood and joints. On leaving symptoms for gonorrhoea untreated, it can also lead to health complications such as epididymitis in men, which can ultimately lead to infertility. Leaving gonorrhoea untreated can also increase the risk of women having an ectopic pregnancy. On leaving the infection untreated, people who have contracted this infection are at a greater risk of developing other severe infections such as HIV.
How can gonorrhoea be diagnosed?
Being a bacterial infection, gonorrhoea hardly ever shows any symptoms at all, which makes it difficult to be diagnosed. Gonorrhoea testing, which can help in diagnosing the infection, can be carried out through staining samples, urine tests and conducting culture tests. Urine tests are more popularly used when it comes to diagnosing sexually transmitted infections. You can use the gonorrhoea test for diagnosing this infection, which should be taken about two weeks after having unprotected sexual intercourse. This is because the bacterium takes at least two weeks to appear as an infection on the test.
How can gonorrhoea be treated?
After gonorrhoea testing, if the results are positive, it indicates that you have contracted the infection. Being a bacterial infection, you can cure the infection completely with the help of antibiotic medications. The most popular and commonly used antibiotics for treating gonorrhoea are Azithromycin, Cefixime and Doxycycline. You can either take Cefixime as a single high dosage, which can completely cure the infection. You are required to take a 400 mg dosage for treating bacterial infections such as gonorrhoea. You can also take Doxycycline in lower dosages twice a day, for up to 7 to 10 days.
What are the symptoms of gonorrhoea?
The general symptoms of gonorrhoea experienced by people include itching, rashes, bleeding, discharge and painful bowel movements. Men who are infected with this bacterium, can experience symptoms such as a burning sensation while urinating, coloured discharge from the penis, and swollen or painful testicles. It has been observed that men usually experience the symptoms around 2 to 5 days after getting infected. The symptoms for gonorrhoea experienced by women include a painful or burning sensation while urinating, vaginal bleeding between periods and increased vaginal discharge. The symptoms that are experienced by women are usually less aggressive than that of men, and there is also a probability that they do not experience any symptoms at all.
What are the risk factors of this infection?
Gonorrhoea like other bacterial infections, if left untreated, can prove to be very harmful for you. If this infection is left untreated, then it can prove life threatening if it spreads in to your blood and joints. On leaving symptoms for gonorrhoea untreated, it can also lead to health complications such as epididymitis in men, which can ultimately lead to infertility. Leaving gonorrhoea untreated can also increase the risk of women having an ectopic pregnancy. On leaving the infection untreated, people who have contracted this infection are at a greater risk of developing other severe infections such as HIV.
How can gonorrhoea be diagnosed?
Being a bacterial infection, gonorrhoea hardly ever shows any symptoms at all, which makes it difficult to be diagnosed. Gonorrhoea testing, which can help in diagnosing the infection, can be carried out through staining samples, urine tests and conducting culture tests. Urine tests are more popularly used when it comes to diagnosing sexually transmitted infections. You can use the gonorrhoea test for diagnosing this infection, which should be taken about two weeks after having unprotected sexual intercourse. This is because the bacterium takes at least two weeks to appear as an infection on the test.
How can gonorrhoea be treated?
After gonorrhoea testing, if the results are positive, it indicates that you have contracted the infection. Being a bacterial infection, you can cure the infection completely with the help of antibiotic medications. The most popular and commonly used antibiotics for treating gonorrhoea are Azithromycin, Cefixime and Doxycycline. You can either take Cefixime as a single high dosage, which can completely cure the infection. You are required to take a 400 mg dosage for treating bacterial infections such as gonorrhoea. You can also take Doxycycline in lower dosages twice a day, for up to 7 to 10 days.
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