Gonorrhea is an infectious disease that occurs when the body is infected with gonococcus, a harmful bacteria. Treatment of gonorrhea may be necessary not only in case of contact with infected tissues of the genital organs, but also when the pathogen enters the mucous membranes of the oral cavity, organs of vision and intestines.
Disease: what is it?
You can become infected with gonorrhea through contact with an infected person. The predominant percentage of cases occur in intimate acts with such people without the use of barrier methods of protection.
However, sometimes treatment for gonorrhea is required for people who have acquired the pathological bacterium through non-sexual contact. The risk is especially high for girls - there are many cases where infection was explained by the use of common objects at the same time as the patient.
As a rule, infection occurs through washcloths and towels. This is explained by the ability of gonococcus to survive for some time in a humid environment.
Sometimes symptoms of gonorrhea indicating the need for treatment were observed in people who did not wash their hands very often and thoroughly. In infants, the pathogen can be acquired from the mother, usually at birth. As a rule, gonococcus is localized in the eyes and mouth.
Basic points
Signs of gonorrhea indicating the need for treatment appear days or weeks after contact with an infected individual. For some, the incubation period lasts only a few days, for others it lasts for a month. During this entire period there are no symptoms, but a person can pass on the pathology further.
Manifestations of the disease depend on the gender of the infected person. Men more often suffer from burning and itching when passing urine, and the substance itself contains pus. The urethra is a source of purulent, unpleasant-smelling discharge.
In this case, the person feels pain, there may be general heat, swelling and redness of the reproductive organs. Pain in the intestinal tract is a symptom of gonorrhea in men indicating the need for treatment.
Occurs if gonococcus is localized in the intestines, especially severe during bowel movements.
The symptoms of gonorrhea that indicate infection and the need for treatment differ in men and women. Women suffer from yellowish profuse vaginal discharge, pain in the lower abdomen due to swelling of the vagina and cervix.
The frequency of urination increases. Defecation is accompanied by pain if the disease develops according to the proctitis scenario. Often the symptoms are quite weak, so they are neglected.
In this case, the person poses a danger to others, and the disease can take a chronic form.
What to do?
The sooner treatment for gonorrhea can be started, the easier it will be to eliminate the disease, and the fewer negative consequences and complications you will have to endure. Treatment is required for both partners. At the first stage of the disease, infection can be eliminated with just one procedure.
Treatment of gonorrhea with antibiotics is most often done with Ceftriaxone. The drug is injected into muscle tissue once. Dosage – a quarter of a gram. As a rule, this is enough for a complete recovery.
An alternative option is one Cefixime tablet (400 mg of active substance) or an injection of Spectinomycin. The last indicated drug is used in an amount of 2 g, injected into muscle tissue.
One injection is enough.
It will be much more difficult to treat gonorrhea if the inflammation has spread and affected the uterus, appendages, testicles, and prostate. In this case, it will not be possible to get rid of the disease in one procedure.
The doctor will develop a treatment regimen based on the characteristics of the disease. You will have to carefully follow all recommendations. The duration of the course is from a week to four.
Intimate contacts, including protected ones, are prohibited for the entire period.
What to use?
Treatment of chronic gonorrhea is most often practiced with antimicrobial drugs from the cephalosporin category. Previously, penicillins were used, but gonococci developed resistance to this type of medicine. Other options are aminoglycosides, macrolides, tetracyclines. As a rule, they are resorted to if cephalosporins do not show a pronounced effect.
When gonorrhea is detected, it is necessary to undergo a full diagnosis to detect other infectious diseases. As a rule, a person suffers from trichomoniasis and chlamydia at the same time as gonorrhea, which forces the use of a combined regimen to simultaneously get rid of all problems.
In the process of treating gonorrhea in men and women, strict adherence to the rules of daily personal hygiene is necessary. Only personal washcloths, towels, and dishes should be used. Compliance with hygiene rules and doctor’s recommendations will allow you to quickly get rid of the disease and minimize the risk of complications, including infertility.
What else should I try?
Sometimes the treatment of gonorrhea in men and women is practiced with the help of fluoroquinolones. The drugs Suprax and Ceforal Solutab have proven themselves well. Sometimes the doctor recommends stopping at Cemidexor or Pancef. The listed drugs are based on cefixime. At the initial stage, one capsule containing 400 mg of active substance is enough.
Sometimes it is recommended to choose drugs based on ciprofloxacin: “Tsiprolet” or “Cifran”. “Tsiprinol” and “Ekotsifol” have a good reputation. The very first medicine that appeared on this component is called “Tsiprobay”. To cure gonorrhea, a one-time use of half a gram of the substance orally is enough.
Ofloxacin-based drugs are used to treat gonorrhea in women. They are also popular in the treatment of male patients. Pharmacy names – “Zoflox”, “Tarivid”. At the initial stage of the disease, 400 mg of the active component is prescribed once.
Tetracyclines against sexually transmitted infections
As a rule, the use of tetracyclines is practiced in cases of combined infection, when it is necessary to simultaneously eliminate chlamydia and prescribe effective treatment for gonorrhea for women and men. The drugs available in the pharmacy that are effective for this diagnosis are derivatives of azithromycin and doxycycline.
The following formulations are based on doxycycline: Doxal, Unidox, Apo-Doxy. At the initial stage of the disease, it is enough to use twice 100 mg of the drug for seven days in a row.
The drugs “Sumamed” and “Azitral” were made based on azithromycin for the treatment of chronic gonorrhea. The names “Zi-factor” and “Zitrolide” have a good reputation. At the initial stage, they are used only once, the dosage is gram.
These options are suitable if gonorrhea occurs without complications. When associated, in some cases chronic, it is necessary to simultaneously combine different antibiotics. Your doctor may recommend additional methods to boost your immune status, as well as non-drug treatments. Instillations and physiotherapy will be beneficial.
Homemade recipes against gonorrhea
Home treatment for gonorrhea is recommended to be coordinated with your doctor and used only as an auxiliary approach to recovery. Traditional medicine alone is not an effective method of getting rid of infection. Most often, healers recommend using burdock for gonorrhea. A decoction is made from the rhizome of the plant.
For three large spoons of pre-crushed rhizome, you need to take three glasses of water and boil the mixture in a water bath. The roots can be used dried or fresh. Boil the liquid for half an hour or more over low heat, covered. As it cools, the water is drained and used for food. Dosage – a couple of large spoons. The decoction is prepared anew every day.
During the day you need to gradually drink all three glasses. The duration of the course is from a week to two.
Treatment of gonorrhea at home with herbal preparations is practiced. Juniper fruits, birch leaves, and dandelion rhizomes are crushed and mixed in equal proportions.
For three large spoons of the mixture, you need to boil a glass of water, pour in the herbs and let it brew for half an hour, after which the liquid is drained.
The infusion is intended for consumption three times daily, a teaspoon a quarter of an hour before meals.
You can treat gonorrhea in women and men at home with a mixture of licorice rhizomes, corn silk, bearberry leaves, and birch leaves. All products are taken in equal quantities.
A quarter liter of water is boiled in a couple of teaspoons, the mixture is cooked in a water bath for a quarter of an hour, then allowed to cool. When the liquid becomes cool, strain it and add boiling water without additives to 250 ml.
The entire volume received must be drunk gradually throughout the day.
What else should I try?
Healers recommend that men use ginseng for gonorrhea. A tincture of this plant can be purchased at any pharmacy. The drug is indicated for use in the morning, before breakfast. Dosage – no more than four drops.
But for women, dill is believed to help. The plant is used to prepare a decoction for douching. For six fresh branches, you need to boil two glasses and pour them over the plant, then cook the mixture in a water bath for 10 minutes.
The liquid is allowed to cool to human body temperature, filtered and drawn into a syringe without a needle, then gently injected into the vagina. The procedure must be carried out in the bathroom or over a basin.
Douching is indicated immediately after hygiene procedures in the morning and evening.
Strengthening the immune system is the key to quick recovery
In order for antibiotics and antiseptic drugs to show maximum results with the least negative consequences, it is necessary to maintain immunity.
Recipes for home treatment are a fairly reliable and effective method of maintaining the body’s strength. People with reduced immunity often drink tea with lemongrass.
Boil a glass of water for half a teaspoon, let it brew and drink it instead of regular tea as often as you want. You can sweeten the drink with honey.
Another option is to mix a third of a kilogram of nuts and 100 g of garlic, chop the products, simmer for a quarter of an hour in a water bath, then let cool.
The mixture is supplemented with a kilogram of honey and a couple of tablespoons of crushed dill seeds. The drug is used for two weeks in a row, eating a tablespoon three times daily.
It is believed that such a mixture not only improves immune status, but also fights inflammation and disinfects body tissues.
Natural diuretics
Treatment at home for gonorrhea involves the use of diuretics to quickly cleanse the genitourinary system of pathogenic microflora. Boil half a liter of water for a couple of tablespoons of parsley, previously crushed in a mortar, pour the liquid over the product and leave for an hour. Then the drink is drained and gradually drunk in small portions throughout the day.
You can try hernia as a natural diuretic. Take half a glass of boiling water for a teaspoon of dried crushed product, let it brew for 30 minutes, then strain off the liquid. The drug is intended for use up to 4 times a day, one tablespoon at a time.
Chronic form: treatment features
In chronic cases, according to WHO recommendations, gonorrhea should be treated with ciprofloxacin, ceftriaxone, cefixime or spectinomycin. Currently, strains of pathological microflora have appeared that tend to produce penicillinase.
Penicillin antibiotics are powerless against them, but in other cases of gonorrhea pathogens they can be used. Semi-synthetic drugs of the isoxazoline group are considered the most effective.
They are not affected by gastric juice or penicillinase, due to which such therapy shows good results. With good tolerability and an affordable price, the effectiveness is expressed even if the strains form penicillinase.
Long-acting penicillin antibiotics have also proven themselves well. Sometimes bicillin-3 is injected. Dosage – 1.2 million units. four days in a row. Frequency – one procedure per day.
As penicillin-producing strains become more common, cephalosporins have received particular attention from doctors. These are bactericidal drugs that are effective against typical and atypical pathogens.
Cefoperazone shows the desired result in 100% of cases during infection without complications; when using cephalothin, the cure rate is estimated at an average of 92%.
Currently, cephalosporins are becoming less effective and also reduce the susceptibility of the pathogen to other drugs.
Other options for chronicling
To treat gonorrhea, you can use different types of tetracycline drugs. Statistics show that a positive treatment result is observed in 99% of cases. The best effect is produced by long-acting synthetic oxytetracycline.
Macrolides, primarily erythromycin, are used quite often for gonorrhea. They are also popular due to the possibility of taking them during pregnancy.
True, erythromycin breaks down in an acidic gastric environment and shows a negative effect on the circulatory system, so scientists are actively working on developing more advanced composition options.
Azithromycin was made from erythromycin, the effectiveness of which was estimated on average at 95%.
Recently, for chronic gonorrhea, uroantiseptics made with nalidixic acid have been increasingly used. Quinolones, which have a systemic effect, are dangerous for a wide range of microflora. By passive diffusion they penetrate into the cell membrane and inhibit DNA gyrase. Lomefloxacin is considered the most effective.
Course Features
The most popular are shortened therapeutic regimens, but they are associated with certain disadvantages. In particular, the risk of allergies and complications after treatment is high.
Not all patients tolerate antibiotics intended for oral use satisfactorily, since the dosage is quite high.
Most medications are not approved for use in the treatment of pregnant and lactating women, children and adolescents - that is, an impressive percentage of all patients with gonorrhea.
Recently, the cooperative method for assessing the effectiveness of medications has not been practiced and there are no generally accepted instructions for choosing a therapeutic course.
This leads to an arbitrary selection of various drugs at the discretion of the doctor.
Sometimes treatment fails, which leads to negative consequences, the likelihood of developing persistent forms of the pathogen increases, and the disease spreads further.
Treatment: general rules
Treatment for gonorrhea (chronic and acute) will only be effective if both regular sexual partners are treated, even if one of them has no symptoms of infection. Typically, two different antimicrobial drugs are prescribed; During therapy, sexual activity is completely excluded.
Even if symptoms completely disappear, the patient must strictly follow medical instructions and take medications in the prescribed doses. Two weeks after the course, it is necessary to take tests to determine the presence of the pathogen in the body.
To prevent relapse, tests are repeated after another two weeks.
If both measures show the absence of pathological microflora, the person is considered cured.
Source: https://www.syl.ru/article/378742/metodyi-lecheniya-gonorei-simptomyi-puti-zarajeniya-profilaktika
Treatment of gonorrhea: description of drugs and treatment regimens
How to cure gonorrhea quickly
Modern medicine allows you to get rid of gonorrhea with just one injection. The most commonly used drug in this case is zinacef, injected into the gluteal muscle. Injections of netromycin, novocef, and plivacef also help. If necessary, Piprax and Movid are prescribed.
However, such healing is only possible when dealing with an uncomplicated form of gonorrhea - gonococcal urethritis, which is detected in time by a specialist. However:
- if the disease was not detected in time, and this led to damage to the prostate gland - in a man or the uterus and appendages - in a woman
- if gonorrhea occurs against the background of trichominiasis, chlamydia and other diseases;
- if a gonococcal infection provokes conjunctivitis, pharyngitis, damage to the meninges, heart or joints, proctitis, there can be no talk of any quick treatment for gonorrhea.
Only a specialist can identify the stage of the disease and select the appropriate treatment method.
How is gonorrhea treated: methods and drugs
Let's look at the most common treatments for gonorrhea. The information is provided for general information only.
Treatment of gonorrhea with sumamed
When treating gonorrhea, sumamed is prescribed in combination with doxycycline and ceftriaxone. At the same time, with its safety, sumamed can:
- negatively affect the nervous system, as a result of which the patient may become dizzy, experience insomnia, nervousness, affect the sense of smell and taste, and deteriorate their mood;
- negatively affect the cardiovascular system, leading to arrhythmia and tachycardia;
- negatively affect the gastrointestinal tract, causing pain and stomach cramps, diarrhea, constipation, nausea;
- lead to allergic reactions - swelling, skin rashes, anaphylactic shock;
- negatively affect the genitourinary system, leading to the development of candidiasis.
People who have impaired liver and kidney function should be treated with sumamed very carefully. The drug is not suitable for women during the 1st trimester of pregnancy and lactation. And it is not taken at the same time as dihydroergotamine and ergotamine.
Suppositories for the treatment of gonorrhea
They can be administered either intravaginally (for example, betadine, metronidazole) or rectally (for example, hexicon, betiol). Intravaginal ones are used for therapeutic purposes. Rectal - if the infection enters the rectum or trichomoniasis develops simultaneously with gonorrhea.
Suppositories are also not suitable for everyone:
- Hexigon should be avoided if you are hypersensitive to chlorhexidine;
- from betadine - with high sensitivity to iodine, pathologies of the thyroid gland. Kidney and liver failure;
- from metronidazole - if there is renal failure or impaired functions of the central nervous system;
- from betiol - if there is prostate hyperplasia or glaucoma.
Cetofaxime for the treatment of gonorrhea
The drug is perfectly combined with other medications and is easily excreted from the body: up to 90% with urine - in 1 hour with intravenous injection or in 1-1.5 with intramuscular injection. However, people with kidney problems should use it very carefully. Cetofaxime can also:
- lead to various allergic reactions;
- disrupt liver function;
- cause vomiting, nausea, diarrhea;
- lead to dizziness and pain in the temporal and occipital areas of the head.
Azithromycin for gonorrhea
The treatment regimen for gonorrhea with azithromycin is as follows:
- tablets are taken one hour before meals;
- in acute cases of gonorrhea, take 1.5 g of the drug at a time, or the dose of 2 g is divided into two times - 1 g each.
Improvement in well-being occurs already on the first day after taking it. According to statistics, a single dose of 2 g of the drug eliminates gonorrhea in 99% of cases. Azithromycin also combines well with other antibiotics.
Tsiprolet for the treatment of gonorrhea
Ciprolet tablets should be taken before meals and washed down with plenty of water, although some patients do this 20-30 minutes after meals, because after taking the drug they experience a feeling of bitterness in the mouth and nausea. Other unpleasant side effects include diarrhea, weakness, tinnitus, impaired perception of taste, smell and color, and increased intracranial pressure. It is contraindicated to take the drug if the patient suffers from an allergy to it, mental disorders and epilepsy, brain diseases, liver and kidney diseases (usually for patients with kidney disease the dose is halved).
Treatment regimen for gonorrhea
The selection of a treatment regimen for gonorrhea depends on the stage at which the disease is detected, what condition the patient is in, and whether there are any contraindications.
For a long time, it was customary to treat gonorrhea with penicillin antibiotics (amoxicillin, oxacillin). However, at present, for patients who are allergic to these drugs, and who have not received the desired result, there is an excellent alternative - cephalosporin antibiotics, which include cefataxime.
Gonorrhea accompanied by other infections is treated with macrolides (azithromycin, sumamed) or antibiotics belonging to the fluoroquinone group (ciprofloxacin, ciprolet).
In the chronic form of gonorrhea, antibiotics are supplemented with local treatment. The bladder is washed, and in men, the urethra.
When treating a complicated form, azithromycin is used, but its dosage is increased. The interval between doses is 6-12 hours.
Timing of treatment for gonorrhea
How quickly is gonorrhea treated? The duration of the course is also influenced by the severity of the disease and the patient’s individual tolerance to the drugs. As already mentioned, a mild form of gonorrhea can be treated within one day. But most often the course of treatment for gonorrhea is 1-2 weeks. If the case is particularly advanced, then a month.
But even with the most favorable option with one injection, a person is considered healthy only after the symptoms completely disappear and laboratory tests confirm the result.
What are the dangers of untreated gonorrhea?
Untreated gonorrhea risks relapse in a more complex form, because the gonococcus remains in the body. The consequences of this are dire.
These include infertility, chronic pain, damage to internal organs (including the heart and liver), and an increased risk of contracting AIDS.
But pregnant women are especially vulnerable here, as they risk transmitting the infection to their child. Their risk of miscarriage and the risk of ectopic pregnancy increases.
Video: treatment of gonorrhea
In this video you can learn a little more about the treatment of the disease.
Source: https://myvenerolog.com/spisok-boleznej/bakterialnye-infektsii/gonoreya/lechenie-gonorei-opisanie-preparatov-i-shemy-lecheniya.html
Gonorrhea: symptoms and treatment, photos, signs of gonorrhea
Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted sexually transmitted disease that affects the columnar epithelium of the urogenital tract. Its extreme contagiousness is mentioned in the Old Testament and in the treatises of ancient Greek scientists. The term “gonorrhea” was first used in the 2nd century BC. Roman surgeon and philosopher Galen, who mistakenly called discharge from the male urethra “semen” (gonos - seed, rheos - flow).
For gonorrhea, there are no differences based on gender and social status, and both a small child and an adult can become its victim. According to statistics from the World Health Organization, every year this insidious disease affects about a quarter of a billion of the planet's population.
This is explained by the fact that the causative agent of the disease is highly resistant to certain medications, and social and behavioral factors (the flourishing of homosexuality, prostitution and the growth of promiscuity) play a significant role in the spread of infection.
The risk group for gonorrhea includes people aged 17 to 32 years, sexually active teenagers, as well as people who have multiple sexual partners and do not use personal protective equipment.
The causative agent of the disease
The causative agent of the disease is Neisser's gonococcus, discovered in 1879. This is an obligate extracellular and intracellular parasite, reaching a length of 1.5 microns, without mobility and does not form spores. Under the microscope lens, it appears as a paired diplococcus, shaped like coffee beans or beans, facing each other with their concave surfaces and separated by a narrow slit-like opening. Reproduction of gonococcus occurs through indirect division perpendicular to the gap located between paired cocci.
Note: fresh gonorrhea is characterized by an intracellular location of gonococci, while chronic gonorrhea is characterized by an extracellular location.
Gonococcus is a specific pyogenic human parasite that can penetrate not only leukocytes, but also larger bacterial cells. Its body is surrounded by an outer three-layer membrane containing various structural proteins.
In turn, the membrane is protected by a dense multilayer capsule. On the outside of the gonococcus there are thin tubular microscopic filaments (pili).
With their help, the pathogen adheres to the epithelial cells of the mucous membrane of the urogenital tract.
Under the influence of unfavorable conditions, gonococcus can form L-forms (enter a state of suspended animation). Thus, it is able to survive the treatment process and later cause a relapse of the disease.
Sources of infection and routes of transmission of gonorrhea
Most often, gonorrheal infection is transmitted sexually (through genital contact). In this case, the source of infection is a sick person suffering from an asymptomatic or mild form of gonorrhea.
Penetrating into the male body, gonococcal flora causes inflammation of the urethral mucosa. In the female body, the infection affects the urethra, the vestibule of the vagina and the cervical canal, and in little girls - the vulva and vagina.
In passive homosexuals, the focus of infection is often the rectum (in girls and women, such a lesion develops due to the flow of discharge from infected genital organs).
With oral-genital contact, gonococcal infection can affect the mucous membrane of the mouth, tonsils and pharynx. Some experts argue that gonorrhea of the pharynx can develop even as a result of a kiss, and in young children, rhinitis or stomatitis of gonococcal etiology sometimes occurs through dirty hands.
- When gonococci are carried from the genital organs into the eyes, gonococcal eye damage develops, and if a pregnant woman suffers from gonorrhea, the baby is at risk of gonorrheal conjunctivitis during childbirth.
- Due to contact with contaminated amniotic fluid, intrauterine infection of the fetus can occur, and some experts also assume intrauterine hematogenous infection (gonococcemia).
- Indirect route of infection: through common household items, infected bedding, towels, sponges, etc.
Mechanism of disease development
Depending on the place of initial introduction of gonococcal infection, it is customary to distinguish the following types of gonorrhea:
- Genital (gonorrhea of the genitourinary organs);
- Extragenital (gonorrheal damage to the eyes, pharynx and rectum);
- Disseminated or metastatic (complicated gonorrhea).
Despite the fact that gonococci cannot move independently, inflammation gradually covers new areas of the upper layer of the mucous membrane due to the lymphogenous spread of the pathogen.
Forms of gonorrheal infection
In medical practice, gonorrhea is divided into acute and chronic. The acute form includes clinical cases that last no more than two months.
A pathological process that lasts more than two months is diagnosed as chronic gonorrhea.
According to experts, the only morphological criterion for the transition of the acute form to the chronic form is the formation of deep foci of infiltration in the urethra and the formation of fibrous tissue.
It should be emphasized that asymptomatic gonorrhea is sometimes encountered in the practice of venereologists. This is a pathological process that does not cause an inflammatory reaction in the mucosa. In some cases, asymptomatic pathology is nothing more than a disease with a prolonged incubation period, after which characteristic clinical signs appear.
Gonorrhea symptoms
This pathology is characterized by multifocality and mild symptoms (this is due to the anatomical features of the female urogenital tract). Thus, often during the examination of a woman, a gonorrheal lesion, which is not accompanied by subjective sensations, can be detected simultaneously in several locations.
Clinicians distinguish two clinical types of “female” gonorrhea:
Gonococcal lesions of the lower part of the urogenital tract (vulvitis, vaginitis, urethritis, vestibulitis, bartholinitis, endocervicitis).
Ascending gonorrhea (damage to the upper genitourinary tract). In this case, a woman may be diagnosed with gonococcal salpingitis, endometritis, oophoritis and pelvioperitonitis.
The most characteristic signs of a disease of the lower genitourinary system include hyperemia and swelling of the urethra, itching and burning in the vagina, painful urination, as well as thick mucopurulent discharge from the cervical canal.
With the development of ascending gonorrhea, patients complain of pain in the lower abdomen, nausea, vomiting, fever up to 39 degrees, painful urination and menstrual irregularities. Diarrhea may also sometimes develop.
It should be emphasized that due to abortions, probing of the uterine cavity and other gynecological procedures, the infection can spread beyond the internal os of the uterus.
Signs of gonorrhea in men
With “male” gonorrhea, a predominant lesion of the urethra (urethritis) is observed. In this case, patients complain of severe cutting pain that occurs when urinating and the appearance of purulent discharge, which can vary in intensity.
Depending on the severity of the signs of the disease, urethritis can be acute, subacute and torpid.
In the acute form, swelling and hyperemia of the urethral sponges are noted, greenish-yellow purulent discharge oozes from the urethral canal throughout the day, and pain and burning appear when urinating.
Anterior acute gonorrheal urethritis is characterized by pain at the beginning of urination, and when the entire urethra is affected (acute total urethritis), pain occurs at the end of urine output.
In the second case, frequent urge to urinate, painful emissions and erections may also be observed.
With severe gonorrheal inflammation, blood impurities are observed in the purulent discharge, and hemospermia (blood in the seminal fluid) develops.
Without appropriate treatment, acute urethritis can progress to the subacute stage, in which swelling and hyperemia of the urethral sponges are not observed. Pain when urinating, as well as purulent or serous-purulent discharge at this stage of the disease are insignificant and are most often observed only after a night's sleep.
The subacute stage may be followed by torpid urethritis with even less pronounced clinical signs. At this stage, scanty discharge occurs only in the morning or when pressing on the urethra.
It should be emphasized that in the absence of adequate treatment, the adnexal and periurethral glands are affected, which leads to the development of multiple complications. The most common of these is prostatitis. This disease develops when the posterior urethra is affected by a gonococcal infection and can occur in both acute and chronic forms.
Prostatitis is often accompanied by inflammation of the seminal vesicles (vesiculitis), inflammation of the epididymis (epididymitis), balanoposthitis and phimosis (lengthening or narrowing of the foreskin).
Signs of extragenital gonorrhea
Extragenital forms of infection, that is, those outside the genital area, include pharyngitis and proctitis. Gonorrheal proctitis is a pathological condition that develops in girls and women due to the flow of purulent discharge from the vagina into the anus, or causes anal sexual intercourse.
With acute gonorrheal proctitis, patients complain of pain during defecation, as well as burning and itching in the anus. Sometimes when cracks form, blood may be mixed into the stool. There is hyperemia in the area of the anus, and accumulations of pus are found in the skin folds.
Gonococcal tonsillitis and pharyngitis, resulting from oral-genital contact, can only be detected using bacteriological examination, since they do not have characteristic differential features.
Disseminated gonococcal infection
This pathological condition occurs when the pathogen from the primary source of infection enters the bloodstream.
Often, gonococci die in the blood under the influence of natural immunity factors, but in some cases they begin to multiply there and, together with the bloodstream, enter various tissues and organs, causing damage to the liver, joints, meninges, skin and endocardium.
It should be emphasized that the spread of the pathogen does not depend either on the virulence of the microorganism or on the nature of the primary focus.
As a rule, this occurs in immunodeficiency conditions, long-term unrecognized infection, inadequate treatment, as well as during pregnancy, due to instrumental manipulation or due to sexual intercourse that provoked trauma to the mucous membrane.
In clinical practice, there are 2 forms of disseminated gonococcal infection: mild and severe. A mild form of the disease is characterized by articular syndrome, and in a severe form the patient develops sepsis, accompanied by hepatitis, pericarditis or meningitis.
Gonorrhea of the eye
Gonococcal conjunctivitis is characterized by hyperemia and swelling of the eyelids, profuse purulent discharge from the eyes and photophobia. If left untreated, the infectious process spreads to the cornea of the eye. As a consequence, swelling, clouding, ulceration and infiltration of the cornea are observed.
When gonococcal infection spreads to the inner lining of the eye, ophthalmia develops, leading to ulceration and subsequent scarring, which can ultimately lead to blindness.
Diagnosis of gonorrhea
Diagnosis of the disease is based on the patient’s sexual history and the presence of pathogenetic signs of the inflammatory process.
It is mandatory for representatives of both sexes to examine discharge from the genital organs.
At the same time, women may be prescribed a study of the discharge of the Bartholin gland, paraurethral ducts, vaginal walls and cervix.
In some cases, men are advised to examine the secretions of the prostate gland and seminal vesicles, rectal lavage, as well as examination of the lacunae and glands of the urethra.
The diagnosis of “gonorrhea” is established only when a pathogen is detected in the examined discharge. For this purpose, several methods are used in laboratory practice:
1. Bacterioscopy. Today, this is the most common method, which involves the examination of two smears of discharge, one of which (for indicative microscopy) is stained with methylene blue, and the other (allowing the final identification of the pathogen) is stained with Gram. If typical forms of gonococcus are detected in both smears, the analysis is considered positive.
2. Culture method. Unfortunately, due to its variability, the pathogen cannot always be identified by bacterioscopic examination. Therefore, when diagnosing asymptomatic forms of gonococcal infection, a culture method is used. This technique, which involves the use of culture media, is the “gold standard” for identifying Neisser's gonococcus.
3. PCR diagnostics. This method is based on identifying pathogen DNA in biological material.
4. Transcription amplification reaction. This is a relatively new technique that is more sensitive than PCR and other amplification methods. With its help, it is possible to identify a living pathogen even in a very small amount of material, which allows you to monitor the results of the treatment.
Treatment of gonorrhea
Experts urge people not to try to cure gonorrhea on their own, as often such rash actions can lead to the disease becoming chronic.
It should be noted that if a gonococcal infection is detected in a patient, all sexual partners who have had contact with him for two months are examined and treated.
During this period, any sexual contact is strictly prohibited, and the consumption of alcoholic beverages and the consumption of fatty, spicy and smoked foods are also contraindicated.
Treatment of gonorrhea involves the use of antibacterial drugs. Over the past decades, gonococcus has acquired resistance to penicillin antibiotics, and therefore, at the present stage, patients have been prescribed other groups of antibacterial drugs with bacterioscopic and bactericidal action.
- With fresh acute gonorrhea, etiotropic therapy that affects the cause of the disease is often sufficient, but with the development of a complicated, latent and chronic form of gonorrheal infection, patients are prescribed complex treatment after a preliminary determination of the sensitivity of the pathogen to a particular antibacterial drug.
- Note: fluoroquinolones and aminoglycosides are contraindicated for pregnant women, nursing mothers and children under 14 years of age, therefore pathogenetic therapy is prescribed to this group of patients purely individually.
- If a pregnant woman has gonorrhea, preventive treatment is given immediately after the baby is born.
- For mixed forms of infection, the main treatment is combined with immunotherapy, physiotherapy and local procedures.
- At the end of the course, after all the characteristic symptoms of the disease have disappeared, the patient undergoes several control examinations using various types of provocations.
Gonorrhea prevention
- Use of personal protective equipment;
- Compliance with personal hygiene rules;
- Use of special antiseptics (chlorhexidine, miramistin, etc.) after accidental unprotected sexual contact
- Regular diagnosis of STDs in people who frequently change sexual partners.
- Mandatory medical examinations of workers in the food sector, children's and medical institutions.
- Mandatory screening for gonorrhea in pregnant women.
- Sanitary educational work of highly specialized specialists among the population.
Source: https://bezboleznej.ru/gonoreya
Gonorrhea. Main causes of gonorrhea. Standard and specific symptoms of gonorrhea. Correct diagnosis, prevention and treatment methods for gonorrhea
Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted disease that causes inflammation of those human organs that are lined with epithelium: the cervix, urethra, rectum, lower third of the rectum, oropharynx, conjunctiva of the eyes.
The disease is infectious and sexually transmitted. Its causative agent is gonococcus. It cannot exist in the external environment, since when treated with antiseptics, heated or dried, it dies under the influence of sunlight.
Therefore, there is little chance of becoming infected by visiting swimming pools, baths, saunas, toilets, or using towels or utensils. Gonorrhea is mainly transmitted through sexual intercourse. The probability of infection from an infected sexual partner during unprotected sex is 70%.
It is worth noting that this is a very high percentage, much higher than other sexually transmitted diseases.
Gonorrhea, being the most common sexually transmitted disease, is generally one of the most “popular” bacterial infections of our time. Its origins go back centuries, because even in the Bible, the works of Hippocrates and the books of Ancient India, symptoms very similar to gonorrhea are mentioned.
Causes of gonorrhea
In 99% of cases, the cause of gonorrhea infection is sexual contact (vaginal, oral, anal) with a sick partner, without using a condom.
Sometimes infection can also occur at home, through the personal items of a patient with gonorrhea. Most often, children, especially girls, become infected in this way from sick parents due to their physiological characteristics.
A baby born to an infected mother can become infected while passing through the birth canal.
The incubation period usually lasts two to five days, but can last up to one month.
Gonorrhea, of course, is not as terrible in its consequences as syphilis. But it can cause infertility (both male and female), sexual dysfunction in men, and infection of newborns. So gonorrhea, which is most common among young people, seriously affects demographic indicators.
- Gonorrhea can occur in three forms: acute (fresh), chronic and latent.
- The fresh form of gonorrhea is divided into acute, subacute and torpid.
- A chronic form of gonorrhea is considered to be one that has been ongoing for more than two months.
- The latent form of gonorrhea is asymptomatic.
- What explains such differences in the course of gonorrhea?
- The course of gonorrhea is influenced by a person’s age, the body’s ability to resist infection, the general condition of the body, and the presence of concomitant diseases.
- If, for example, during the period of infection a person took antibiotics or other medications, then clear symptoms of gonorrhea may not be observed for a long time.
Self-medication can lead to a latent form of gonorrhea - symptomatic sensations are dulled, and the infection is not eliminated. So resorting to self-cure of gonorrhea, like any other sexually transmitted disease, is strictly contraindicated.
Gonorrhea symptoms
Typical and common manifestations of gonorrhea in women and men are discharge from the genitals and pain in the form of cutting when urinating.
The classic symptoms of gonorrhea in women are thick or watery, quite profuse, purulent vaginal discharge, greenish or yellow in color. They may be accompanied by pain in the lower abdomen and bleeding between menstruation. The urge to urinate appears very often. Swelling and hyperemia of the mucous membranes are quite noticeable.
It is worth noting that the first signs of gonorrhea appear after the end of menstruation.
The characteristic signs of gonorrhea in men are very similar to the symptoms of acute urethritis: the urethra is swollen, pain and burning are felt, urination is frequent, difficult and painful.
Frequent urination can spread gonococci to the prostate or urethra. As a result of infection, urethritis or prostatitis occurs. Gonorrheal urethritis and prostatitis are the most common complications of gonorrhea.
Chronic prostatitis is difficult to cure and leads to sexual weakness and infertility.
Soreness, swelling, and redness of the scrotum in a man infected with gonorrhea may be a sign of gonorrheal epididymitis (inflammation of the epididymis). It develops quite acutely, the pain in the scrotum is so severe that the man moves with great difficulty. If the process affects both testicles, it can lead to infertility.
But gonorrhea does not always manifest itself so clearly and unambiguously. This is due to the fact that infection can be mixed - chlamydia and trichomonas are added to it.
Such a “composition” can bring complete chaos to the symptoms and lengthen the classic periods of the incubation period. And this, accordingly, leads to difficulties in diagnosing and treating the disease.
In addition, gonorrhea can often occur with minor symptoms or be completely asymptomatic.
Unfortunately, half of the cases of gonococcal infection in women manifest themselves in this way. And a woman turns to a gynecologist for help only when diarrhea, vomiting and nausea appear, body temperature rises significantly, and all this is against the background of menstrual irregularities.
- But these symptoms indicate that an ascending inflammatory process is occurring in the body - gonococci
- the ovaries, uterus, fallopian tubes or peritoneum are affected.
- An ascending type of gonococcal infection can be provoked by the introduction of an intrauterine device, abortion, various diagnostic procedures in the form of a biopsy or curettage, and menstruation.
In men with an ascending type of gonococcal infection, chills and painful bowel movements appear, and body temperature rises. This condition is caused by the prostate, testicles or seminal vesicles being affected.
When girls are infected with gonococci, the disease takes a rather acute course. It is characterized by hyperemia and swelling of the vulva, the appearance of purulent discharge. Itching and burning appear in the genital area, and the process of urination becomes painful.
If gonococci enter the body through the throat, gonococcal pharyngitis occurs. It is often asymptomatic, but pain and redness in the throat and fever may occur.
The symptoms of gonococcal proctitis are often very mild, but if they appear, it is in the form of pain in the anus and bleeding from it, constipation, and cloudy discharge from the rectum.
The chronic form of gonorrhea, like the course of any chronic disease, is characterized by periods of calm and exacerbation. Chronic gonorrhea in the acute phase is similar to acute gonorrhea.
Its consequence in men can be a decrease in libido, and in women it can provoke adhesions in the pelvis, menstrual irregularities, and can also affect the reproductive function of the female body.
Diagnosis of gonorrhea
In a man infected with gonococci, the symptoms of infection appear quite clearly, which forces him to seek medical help.
Women quite often mistake the appearance of discharge for a manifestation of thrush, and the sensation of pain when urinating for cystitis. Incorrect assessment leads to the fact that gonorrhea in women is detected during preventive examinations or when identifying partners of an infected man. The development of complications of gonorrhea can also lead a woman to see a gynecologist.
Medicine can deal with the causative agent of gonorrhea quite easily, but you should not delay diagnosis and treatment, and even more so you should not self-medicate. This will only extinguish the source of infection and provoke the gonococci to become addicted to antibiotics, which will complicate diagnosis and treatment.
First of all, the doctor will analyze the discharge from the urethra or cervical canal. A specialist can see the result of a smear examination after just twenty minutes.
At the same time, an examination is carried out for the presence of other sexually transmitted diseases: syphilis, HIV, hepatitis. This is due to the fact that such an infection is often mixed.
Blood and urine tests (general and biochemical), ultrasound of the pelvic organs, urethroscopy for men, colposcopy for women - all these methods serve to correctly diagnose gonorrhea.
But in some cases, when there is no hope for the patient to visit the clinic in good faith, and there are quite clear signs of gonorrhea, the doctor prescribes treatment immediately after examining the discharge from the genital organs.
If, as a result of the examination, an acute form of gonorrhea is detected in a patient, then his sexual partners over the past two weeks are subject to examination. If gonorrhea is detected with mild symptoms, all sexual partners are examined and treated within two months.
Treatment of gonorrhea
Gonorrhea can be cured quickly and effectively. The treatment method depends on the form and duration of the disease, the presence of complications, concomitant infections, symptoms and location of the lesion.
- If an ascending form of gonorrhea is detected, the patient must be hospitalized, he is recommended bed rest, and an adequate course of treatment.
- The main treatment for gonorrhea is the use of antibiotics.
- If the infection is mixed, then a specific course of drugs for treatment is selected.
- The asymptomatic, torpid or chronic form involves treatment not only with a course of antibiotics, but also the use of local treatment, physiotherapy and immunotherapy.
- The acute form of gonorrhea is completely cured in a few days if two conditions are met - timely detection and properly selected treatment.
A week after completion of the course of treatment, a control laboratory analysis is performed. If there are no gonococci in the smear, the symptoms of the disease have disappeared, then the result of treatment is considered successful.
When undergoing a course of treatment, the patient, in order to avoid gonorrhea becoming chronic, must abstain from alcohol, sexual intercourse, spicy foods, excessive physical activity, cycling and skiing.
Gonorrhea prevention
Prevention should be carried out within the first 24 hours after sexual contact with a casual partner.
Having recovered from gonorrhea, you must convince your partner of the need for examination and treatment. Otherwise, gonorrhea may recur.
But the best ways to prevent gonorrhea are to avoid casual sex and use condoms.
Source: https://lifestyleladies.ru/themes/health/gonorrhea-symptoms-and-causes-of-the-disease-effective-methods-of-diagnosis-prevention-and-treatment-of-gonorrhea/
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