Gonorrhea Risks & Complications

How is gonorrhea spread?

Men and women can get gonorrhea by having unprotected vaginal sex, anal sex, or by performing and receiving oral sex. The Neisseria gonorrhoea bacteria that causes gonorrhea infects the moist, mucous membranes of the penis, vagina, rectum (anus), throat and eyelids.

• Gonorrhea can spread even if the penis or tongue do not completely enter the vagina or anus.
• You cannot get gonorrhea from a toilet seat.
• Gonorrhea can be passed when using sex toys.
• Gonorrhea can be transmitted to a baby during delivery.

How can I prevent getting or spreading gonorrhea?

While unpopular, not having sex at all is the only way to be 100% safe from getting or spreading gonorrhea. If you are sexually active, a latex condom is the best way to protect yourself and your partner. And the best way for women to decrease their chance of infection when having sex with other women is to properly use a latex dental dam.

What are the complications from untreated gonorrhea?

If untreated, gonorrhea infections can evolve into reproductive problems and other health complications for both men and women. With our health, we usually wait until we feel sick to find out if we have a problem. With gonorrhea and other STDs, you can have the infection and not feel sick. That's why getting screened for gonorrhea is so important. Here are some of the more common complications associated with gonorrhea for both men and women.

For women, untreated gonorrhea may result in:

• Infertility caused by Pelvic Inflammatory Disease or PID. This is an infection that attacks the uterus and fallopian tubes
• Ectopic pregnancy caused by PID
• Miscarriage
• Inflammation of the bladder
• Chronic pelvic pain

For men, untreated gonorrhea may result in:

• Inflammation of the prostate
• Scarred and narrowed urethra
• Infertility
• Painful inflammation of the epididymis and testes

If you have gonorrhea , tell your partner(s).

Gonorrhea is contagious. If you have gonorrhea, then chances are your sexual partner may as well. You should both be treated at the same time so that you don’t re-infect each other, or anyone else. And since tests can’t tell you how long you’ve been infected, you should tell anyone you’ve recently had sexual contact with that you have been diagnosed so they can get tested too. The CDC recommends that men and women with gonorrhea inform anyone they've had sex with 60 days prior to their diagnosis. Other health agencies suggest you tell partners going back as many as 6 months since gonorrhea can to undetected for a long time.

All pregnant women should be tested for gonorrhea.

Gonorrhea can be passed from mother to baby at birth and may cause miscarriage. Gonorrhea is one of the leading causes of prenatal (before baby’s birth) pneumonia and conjunctivitis (pink eye) in newborns, according to the CDC. These problem can lead to infant mortality (death) or blindness.

HIV and gonorrhea

People with gonorrhea can get HIV, if exposed. It's also important to note that HIV-infected people with gonorrhea can spread HIV more easily to someone else than if they did not have gonorrhea.