What is gonorrhea?
Gonorrhea is a disease caused by bacteria that live and grow in wet areas such as the penis, vagina, eyes, mouth, throat or anus. You can get gonorrhea through vaginal, oral or anal sex. A mother can also pass it to her baby during childbirth.
What does gonorrhea do to my body?
If gonorrhea affects your eye, you may experience discharge, itching, redness and/or swelling.
If gonorrhea affects your mouth or throat, you may experience a sore throat, and/or redness in the mouth and throat area.
How do I find out if I have gonorrhea?
Many people with gonorrhea don’t know it and have no symptoms. The only way to find out if you have it is to get tested.
Is there a cure for gonorrhea?
Yes. Gonorrhea can be cured with antibiotics. Talk with your doctor to decide what medicine is best for you. People with gonorrhea often also have chlamydia so you might need more than one medicine.
Note: If you are pregnant or might be pregnant, ask your doctor about medicines which will not hurt the baby.
If you do not treat gonorrhea you may experience:
You may also get Disseminated Gonococcal Infection (DGI), a disease that occurs when untreated gonorrhea spreads to the skin, heart, blood, and joints. This can cause other problems like arthritis, blood infections, skin lesions, meningitis, and swelling of the lining of the heart.