Gonorrhoea

Gonorrhoea - sometimes referred to as "the clap" - is a bacterial STI that is caused by Nesseria gonorrhoeae or gonococcus bacteria. The infection is passed on through sexual contact. It is easily transmitted and can affect anyone who is sexually active.

The infection can cause serious health problems if it is not treated and doesn't always show symptoms. This is just one reason why it is important to get tested for gonorrhoea on a regular basis.

• Gonorrhoea is very common in Australia. Diagnoses doubled from 2008-2012, to a rate of 59 per 100,000 people in 2012.
• Some strains of gonorrhoea are becoming resistant to common antibiotics that are used to treat the infection. This varies across the country.
• In Australia, gonorrhoea infections are higher in men than women and in people from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. More than 75% of cases affect people between 15 to 34 years of age.

Many people who contract gonorrhoea will not experience any symptoms at all, or these may appear after some time. For example, infections of the throat will very rarely causes symptoms.

For men who do experience symptoms, they may include:

• Discharge from the penis which may be white, green or yellow
• Discomfort or pain when urinating
• Swollen foreskin
• Painful testicles

For women, symptoms may include:

• Thin or watery vaginal discharge that could be green or yellow
• Discomfort or pain when urinating
• Lower abdominal pain
• Bleeding after sex, bleeding between periods or heavier periods

These symptoms are rare, which means that many cases of gonorrhoea go undetected. This can be dangerous.

Long-term complications

Untreated gonorrhoea can lead to complications. Women may develop pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) which causes pelvic pain, infertility and ectopic pregnancy.

If you are pregnant with untreated gonorrhoea you may suffer premature labour or miscarriage. Gonorrhoea may be passed on to your child during birth, and they may be born with conjunctivitis.

Newborn babies usually show gonorrhoea symptoms within weeks. Red swollen eyes and sticky discharge are common. Treatment is necessary to avoid permanent blindness.

Untreated gonorrhoea causes infections of the testicles and prostate gland in men. They can be painful and reduce fertility in some cases.

The bacteria that causes gonorrhoea is transmitted by sexual contact and can infect the cervix, the urethra, the rectum, and sometimes the eyes or throat. You can contract gonorrhoea by having unprotected vaginal, anal or oral sex. It is also possible to contract gonorrhoea if you share sex toys with an infected person.

You can't catch gonorrhoea from sharing towels or cutlery, or from kissing. The bacteria that causes gonorrhoea cannot survive for long periods of time when it is outside the human body.

You will only know if you have gonorrhoea when you have had a test. It is quick and easy to get a test either with your doctor or at a local sexual health clinic. Don't be embarrassed about getting tested, medical staff are used to dealing with sexual health issues.

Any time you have unprotected sex with a new or casual sexual partner, or unprotected sex with a partner that you think may have had other sexual partners, you should get a test. Always get tested if you have been sexually active in countries where infection rates for gonorrhoea are high. If a sexual partner tells you that they have been diagnosed with gonorrhoea, book a test straight away.

A gonorrhoea test will be carried out by a doctor or nurse. They will ask you some questions about your sexual history and may examine your genitals. They will then ask you to provide a urine sample for testing. In some cases, gonorrhoea can be diagnosed using a sample of discharge collected on a swab. Results usually take around a week to come back from the laboratory.

Remember that testing is a good idea whether you have symptoms or not. It's better to treat gonorrhoea than suffer long-term health complications. Your test results will always remain 100% confidential.

If you test positive for gonorrhoea you will be asked to return to the clinic for treatment. Gonorrhoea is often treated using antibiotics.

If you live in an area of Australia with a resistant strain of the STI, treatment can be administered using a single injection and a single tablet. If you have symptoms they will usually disappear within a few days of treatment.

Most doctors recommend that you return for another test a couple of weeks after treatment. This is to check that your treatment has been successful and you are free from gonorrhoea.

Do not have sex during this time because you could infect your partner.

The best way to cut the risk of infection is to use a condom or another barrier protection method during sex. You may want to try female condoms and dams. Dams should be used during oral sex to prevent the transfer of bodily fluids.

The chances of contracting gonorrhoea are also higher if you have multiple sexual partners or partners that have multiple sexual partners themselves. Sexual health is very important and shouldn't be disregarded. Make sure you have protection during sex, get tested regularly and inform your partners if you do test positive. This can help to reduce infection rates and prevent any health issues that are caused by untreated STIs.