What Is GONORRHEA? GONORRHEA Definition & Meaning
Channel: Audiopedia
Date: 2018-10-13

What is GONORRHEA, What does GONORRHEA mean, GONORRHEA meaning, GONORRHEA definition, GONORRHEA explanation

Gonorrhea, also spelled gonorrhoea, is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) caused by the bacterium Neisseria gonorrhoeae.[1] Many people have no symptoms.[1] Men may have burning with urination, discharge from the penis, or testicular pain.[1] Women may have burning with urination, vaginal discharge, vaginal bleeding between periods, or pelvic pain.[1] Complications in women include pelvic inflammatory disease and in men include inflammation of the epididymis.[1] If untreated, gonorrhea can spread to joints or heart valves.[1][2]

Gonorrhea is spread through sexual contact with an infected person.[1] This includes oral, anal, and vaginal sex.[1] It can also spread from a mother to a child during birth.[1] Diagnosis is by testing the urine, urethra in males, or cervix in females.[1] Testing all women who are sexually active and less than 25 years of age each year as well as those with new sexual partners is recommended;[3] the same recommendation applies in men who have sex with men (MSM).[3]

Gonorrhea can be prevented with the use of condoms, having sex with only one person who is uninfected, and by not having sex.[1][3] Treatment is usually with ceftriaxone by injection and azithromycin by mouth.[4][5] Resistance has developed to many previously used antibiotics and higher doses of ceftriaxone are occasionally required.[4][5] Retesting is recommended three months after treatment.[3] Sexual partners from the last 2 months should also be treated.[1]

Gonorrhea affects about 0.8% of women and 0.6% of men.[6] An estimated 33 to 106 million new cases occur each year, out of the 498 million new cases of curable STI – which also includes syphilis, chlamydia, and trichomoniasis.[7][8] Infections in women most commonly occur when they are young adults.[3] In 2015, it caused about 700 deaths.[9] Descriptions of the disease date as far back as the Old Testament.
Source: Wikipedia.org