Gonorrhea.docx

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Gonorrhea Sexually transmitted infection (STI) caused by the gram-negative diplococcus Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Symptoms in men are painful urination and a discharge of pus-containing material from the urethra Complications can involve the joints, heart (gonorrheal endocarditis), meninges (gonorrheal meningitis), eyes, pharynx, or other parts of the body. Gonorrheal arthritis, which is caused by the growth of the gonococcus in fluids in joints, occurs in about 1% of gonorrhea cases. Joints commonly affected include the wrist, knee, and ankle. The symptoms of pharyngeal gonorrhea often resemble those of the usual septic sore throat. Anal gonorrhea can be painful and accompanied by discharges of pus. 2. Gonorrhea can be transmitted through sexual contact Gonorrhea in men is diagnosed by finding gonococci in a stained smear of pus from the urethra. Diagnosis of gonorrhea has been aided by the development of an ELISA test that detects N. gonorrhoeae in urethral pus or on cervical swabs within about 3 hours with high accuracy. Other rapid tests use monoclonal antibodies against antigens on the surface of the gonococcus. Nucleic acid amplification tests are very accurate for identifying clinical isolates from suspected cases. For gonorrhea affecting the cervical, urethral, or rectal tissues, the current recommendation is first to use cephalosporins such as o Ceftriaxone o Cefixime It’s also standard practice to treat sex partners of patients to decrease the risk of reinfection and to decrease the incidence of STIs in general.