Gonorrhea is a common sexually transmitted infection (STI), and it can pass on during any kind of sexual contact. When a doctor diagnoses the issue early, they can usually treat it effectively. But if a person does not receive treatment, gonorrhea can result in long-term complications.
In 2017, there were 555,608 diagnoses of gonorrhea in the United States.
Gonorrhea is a notifiable disease, which means that a doctor must report all diagnoses to the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System. This information enables health authorities to plan treatment and prevention strategies.
Gonorrhea is usually easy to treat, but delaying treatment can result in serious, and sometimes permanent, complications. For example, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) occurs in females when gonorrhea affects the uterus or fallopian tubes. It can lead to infertility.
Possible complications in males with gonorrhea include epididymitis, which is inflammation of the tube that carries sperm. This, too, can result in infertility.
Symptoms
Many people with gonorrhea have no symptoms. Those who do often experience a burning sensation during urination.
Males may also notice:
- white, green, or yellow discharge from the penis
- pain or swelling in the testicles
- inflammation or swelling of the foreskin
