Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted infection. Its causative agent is gonococci, which usually parasitize on the mucous membranes. Unfortunately, the disease is not rare. What are his symptoms? What are the main signs? What are the consequences? What does diagnosis imply, and how is this disease treated? This and many other things will be discussed now.
Symptoms in men
Signs of gonorrhea do not appear immediately after infection. They are preceded by an asymptomatic period. Yes, and the infection itself occurs in stages - first, the pathogen is fixed at the mouth of the urethra, then it enters the cells of the mucous membrane, then it multiplies. Only then do the first signs and symptoms of gonorrhea appear in men.
The incubation period is usually 3-5 days. However, in some cases, it reaches two weeks.
Common symptoms include:
- Discomfortthe course of the urethra, which are quickly replaced by burning and itching.
- Mucoid or purulent white-yellow discharge.
- Redness and swelling of the lips of the urethra on the head of the penis.
- Rise in temperature and the appearance of non-specific signs of general intoxication.
- Painful wet dreams at night.
It should be noted that the first signs and symptoms of gonorrhea in men increase very quickly. A week after the first alarms, they become unbearable. And if at first the suppuration was inconsistent and appeared only after urination or pressure on the head, then it simply does not stop.
However, then the symptoms are sharply blunted. Or they leave as a result of unsystematic, unauthorized use of antibiotics. This does not mean that there has been a recovery. The symptoms are simply erased, but the process of disease development continues. It becomes chronic and difficult to cure.
Complications in men
If the symptoms of gonorrhea are not treated in time, there will be big he alth problems. In a few weeks, the infection will spread along the walls of the urethra all the way to the prostate, bladder, and seminiferous tubules. This results in:
- Prostatitis. Inflammatory lesion of the prostate gland. Symptoms: fever 39 °C, headaches, chills, nausea, body aches and weakness, discomfort in the perineum and lower abdomen, painful urination and ejaculation.
- Cystitis. Infectious disease of the lower urinary tract. Symptoms: Pain in the lower abdomen, frequent need to go to the toilet, persistent feeling of a full bladder, pus, blood and mucus in the urine
- Gonorrheal epididymitis. Inflammation of the epididymis. Symptoms: reddened and swollen skin of the scrotum, painful on palpation.
- Urethritis. Inflammatory process on the mucous membrane of the urethra. Symptoms: yellow-green purulent discharge, constantly elevated temperature up to 38 ° C, swelling and itching of the urethra, burning and pain during urination.
In addition to the above, men often develop sepsis, foci of inflammation in other organs, damage to the heart valves. Also, the disease can lead to narrowing of the urethra, chronic prostatitis and infertility. Therefore, it is extremely important to pay attention to the first symptoms of gonorrhea in time and contact a venereologist.
Symptoms in women
Now you can pay attention to them. How does gonorrhea occur in women? Symptoms, as in the case of men, do not make themselves felt immediately.
Infection first spreads - after entering the genitals, it attacks the cervix, and then the tubes, ovaries, mucous membranes and sometimes even the peritoneum. In rare cases, gonorrhea affects the rectum and throat. This happens because of anal and oral sex, respectively.
Well, here are the symptoms of gonorrhea in women:
- Yellow or white highlights. They are thick and have an unpleasant odor.
- Itching and burning in the areaperineum and vagina. On examination, swelling of the cervix is revealed, which becomes a bright scarlet color.
- Inflammation of the appendages and uterus. At the same time, the woman is worried about pain in the lower abdomen and purulent discharge mixed with blood.
- Fever with decreased appetite, nausea and weakness.
- Infection of the urethra. Manifested in painful and frequent urination.
- Pain during bowel movements, itching and burning in the anus.
- Uncomfortable sensation in the throat, enlarged tonsils and symptoms resembling a sore throat.
With chronic gonorrhea in a woman, the symptoms and first signs are erased in the same way as in men. But periodically pains in the lower abdomen, vaginal discharge and pain in the lumbar region make themselves felt.
Complications in women
They cannot be ignored. It is important to notice the signs and symptoms of gonorrhea in women in time, because ignoring the disease can have very serious consequences. These include:
- Tubo-ovarian abscess. Pus accumulates in the fallopian tube, which subsequently penetrates the ovary.
- Inflammation of the labia. Because of this, by the way, sexual intercourse becomes impossible, since the pain is unbearable.
- Persistent pelvic pain.
- Pelvic inflammatory disease. This leads to infertility.
- Perihepatitis. It manifests itself in inflammation of the liver capsule and the parietal peritoneum adjacent to it.
- Highthe likelihood of a miscarriage in pregnant women or transmission of gonorrhea to him during childbirth.
- Bartolinitis. It manifests itself in inflammation of the paired glands located in the vestibule of the vagina.
- Cervical erosion.
- Reduced sex drive (frigidity).
- Irregular menstruation.
- Joint damage.
Over time, the ignored infection spreads to the pelvic organs. Because of this, inflammation of the uterine appendages, adnexitis and other associated diseases occur. In the most severe and advanced cases, damage to the brain, heart, and peritonitis occurs.
In children
As mentioned above, gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted disease. Unfortunately, it is often diagnosed in adolescents who have an early onset of sexual activity and neglect contraception. But now I would like to consider cases where infection is detected in young children, and not as a result of sexual contact.
Infection can occur when a baby is born into the world through the birth canal. If his mother has gonorrhea, which she has not cured, then there is a huge risk that this will happen. After all, the gonococcus is located on the mucous membrane of the genital organs through which the fetus passes.
Also, infection can occur in a domestic way. It mostly affects girls. According to statistics, among them the disease obtained in this way occurs 10-15 times more often than in boys. This happens due to non-compliance with the rules of hygiene or contact of the child with the things of adults on which the infection has remained.
Treatment of children is carried out according to the same principles that are observed when undergoing therapy with older patients. But special attention is paid to dosages. The body of a child is much weaker than that of an adult, and it is important that antibiotics and other drugs do not harm him.
Diagnosis
Only a doctor can suggest how to treat the symptoms of gonorrhea and the disease itself. But before the appointment of therapy, a diagnosis is necessarily carried out, because an external examination is not a guarantee for the diagnosis.
After a visual examination and an oral medical interview, a person will need to go through several stages. They include bacterioscopic and bacteriological examination, as well as an epidemiological history. It is also mandatory to pass molecular biological tests. These include polymerase chain reaction, blood test and gene test.
In simple terms, the listed methods involve the study in the laboratory of the patient's biological material - blood and smear. This is a long and laborious process. The polymerase chain reaction, for example, takes 24 to 100 hours. That is why you should see a doctor as soon as possible, immediately after the first symptoms of gonorrhea appear.
Men and women are diagnosed according to the same principles. The only difference is that some swabs are taken from the urethra, while others are taken from the vagina.
Treatment regimen
Much has been said above about the signs and symptoms of gonorrhea, butalso about diagnostics. Below will be listed the drugs prescribed to eliminate the disease, but for now we can talk about the treatment regimen.
Here is what the therapy program includes:
- Taking antibiotics. As a rule, these are fluoroquinolones or cephalosporins, which the patient has to drink for several days. The duration of the course is determined by the doctor.
- Taking antibiotics that kill the gonococcus. In parallel, be sure to drink "Trichopol" - an antiprotozoal drug with antibacterial activity. This is an effective treatment for the chronic form of the disease. The course is 10 days.
- If, in addition to gonorrhea, it was possible to detect the presence of chlamydia in the body, you need to take tetracyclines and macrolides. Reception schemes are always compiled individually.
- Use of antifungals on the first, fourth and seventh day after the appointment of treatment. This is necessary for the prevention of candidiasis.
- The use of "Bifiform" or "Enterol" after completing a course of antibiotics. This is necessary for the prevention of intestinal dysbacteriosis. This course lasts 2 weeks.
- Topical treatment. Implies irrigation with antiseptics. For women, it is still necessary to use vaginal suppositories and use special preparations (for example, Epigen Intima), as this helps to restore the vaginal microflora.
You need to understand that only a doctor prescribes treatment. Particular care should be taken with "atypical" patients - pregnant women, for example. They are completely shown gentle treatment, which involves low-doseintramuscular injections of spectinomycin or ceftriaxone.
Drugs
Much has been said above about the symptoms of chronic gonorrhea. Now it is worth listing the medications prescribed to patients for the treatment of this disease. As a rule, doctors prescribe the following drugs:
- "Norfloxacin". It has a bactericidal effect, destroys disease-causing microorganisms, inhibits DNA gyrase, and also disrupts the process of DNA supercoiling.
- "Ciprofloxacin". It has identical actions, but also inhibits the synthesis of bacterial DNA.
- "Ofloxacin". Blocks the DNA gyrase enzyme in infected cells.
- "Lomefloxacin". In addition to the above actions, it also produces an anti-tuberculosis effect.
- "Ceftriaxone". Breaks the so-called cross-linking, which provides the strength and rigidity of parasitic microorganisms.
- "Pefloxacin". It has the previously listed actions, but also affects the synthesis of bacterial proteins and RNA. Destroys parasitic microorganisms that are in the stage of both dormancy and growth.
- "Azithromycin". Broad spectrum antibiotic. Destroys both intracellular and extracellular pathogens.
The duration of taking the listed drugs varies from 3 to 7 days.
If symptoms of chronic gonorrhea have been identified in a woman or a man, then more serious medications and procedures are prescribed. A person has to do a urethral lavage, injections of immunomodulatory drugs, drink biogenic stimulants and undergo physiotherapy (ultrasound, electrophoresis, phonophoresis). The following enzymes are prescribed:
- Ribonuclease.
- Streptokinase.
- Chymotrypsin.
- Lidaza.
- Avelizine.
- Trypsin.
And this is just a small list of what the process of treating the symptoms of gonorrhea includes. Tripper is a complex disease. Only a doctor can choose the most suitable and effective drugs for the patient, taking into account his physiological characteristics and the nature of the course of the disease. Self-medication can only do harm, because all of the listed drugs have contraindications and can cause serious side effects.
Folk remedies
The surest and most reliable way to get rid of the symptoms of gonorrhea is the use of medicines and the passage of the above procedures. But folk remedies can also be a good concomitant therapy. Here are some recipes:
- In equal proportions, mix birch leaves, licorice root, bearberry and corn silk. 2 tbsp pour the resulting collection into a thermos and pour two glasses of boiling water. Let it brew for 30 minutes, and then strain. Drink three times a day for 1 tbsp.
- Thoroughly mix finely chopped, peeled fresh lemon, 50 grams of grated ginger root and 5 tbsp. honey. Send to refrigerator. Add to warm, not hot tea, 1-2 tsp. anddrink every day.
- Pour boiling water over a third of a glass of crushed lingonberry leaves (about 0.6 l). Give it time to stand. Then strain. Drink 2 tbsp. daily.
- In equal proportions mix dandelion roots, crushed juniper berries and birch leaves. 1 tbsp collection, pour boiling water (250 ml), close the lid and wrap. Strain after half an hour. Drink a dessert spoon 15 minutes before meals.
- Pour half a teaspoon of Chinese lemongrass with boiling water (250 ml). close the lid and send for 30 minutes in heat. The resulting volume is divided into three portions. Take each of them with an equal time interval, after adding a spoonful of natural honey to it.
- Take 1.5 tbsp. dried burdock and pour boiling water (250 ml). Send to a slow fire to languish for 15 minutes. Strain the resulting broth, add the same amount of water, and let it brew for 30 minutes. Drink the resulting volume in three doses - morning, afternoon and evening.
These are just some of the popular recipes. There are many other home remedies to help manage the symptoms of gonorrhea, but you should consult your doctor before preparing and using any of them.
Prevention
This is the last thing. To avoid experiencing the symptoms of gonorrhea, you must:
- Be informed about the ways of infection, as well as the first signs of STDs and methods for their prevention.
- Maintain intimate hygiene. Avoid wearing uncomfortable andsynthetic underwear, as well as the use of strongly "chemical" shower products.
- Refuse casual intimate relationships. Use condoms. They can only be abandoned if sex occurs with only one partner who is pure and faithful.
- Get regular check-ups with a venereologist.
- Sign up for a doctor's appointment right away if you experience unpleasant symptoms in the genital area.
Don't take medicine as a preventive measure. This is not advisable, and the abuse of drugs can harm the body.
