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Gonorrhea

Gonorrhea is a common bacterial infection that spreads through oral, anal, and vaginal sex.

If left untreated, gonorrhea can cause severe pain, infertility (inability to get pregnant) and painful or swollen testicles. It can increase the chance of having a tubal (ectopic) pregnancy, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), and long-term pelvic or abdominal pain. In rare instances, untreated gonorrhea can spread to your blood or joints and be life-threatening. Having gonorrhea also makes it more likely to get or pass HIV.

Prevention

Using a new condom, dental dam, or nitrile or latex glove with water- or silicone-based lubricant can prevent passing gonorrhea. Use one correctly for every sexual activity, including each time you change partners and each time you switch between oral, anal, and vaginal sex.

Having multiple partners can increase the chance of getting a sexually transmitted infection (STIs), including gonorrhea. To lower your chance of getting an STI, you can choose to reduce your number of partners, especially those whose recent sexual history you do not know.

Taking the medication doxycycline after sex can prevent STIs, including syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia. Taking doxycycline to prevent STIs is called doxy PEP. Doxy PEP works best within 24 hours after sex. Talk to your health care provider to see if doxy PEP is right for you.

Symptoms

Many people with gonorrhea have no symptoms, so it is possible to have gonorrhea and not know. Gonorrhea can cause serious health problems even without symptoms.

If symptoms occur, they can include:

  • Bleeding between periods
  • Constipation
  • Discharge from the vagina that is different than usual
  • Pain during urination
  • Pain or bleeding during or after sex
  • Rectal pain, bleeding, or discharge
  • Yellow or green discharge (drip) from the penis

Testing

Get tested if you have symptoms, or if you have a sex partner with an STI or symptoms of an STI. You should also consider routine screening for STIs because many STIs do not cause symptoms.

Have an open and honest conversation about your sexual history with your health care provider and ask about STI testing.

Gonorrhea is a localized infection, meaning it only affects the site of exposure. Because of this, your health care provider will test for gonorrhea with a urine sample or swabs from your mouth, anus, vagina, penis, or cervix, depending on the kinds of sex you have.

Treatment

Gonorrhea can be treated with antibiotics. It is important to take the medicine your provider prescribes you as directed to completely clear the infection.

You and your partner(s) should avoid having sex until both you and your partner(s) have finished treatment. This will ensure the infection isn’t passed back and forth. You and your partner(s) should get tested again about three months after finishing treatment to make sure no one has gonorrhea again.

Sex Partners

If you are diagnosed with gonorrhea, your sex partner(s) also need to be tested and treated so they do not develop serious health problems, re-infect you, or pass the infection on to others. Talk to your recent sex partners so that they can be tested and treated. You can also ask your health care provider about Expedited Partner Therapy, where your provider gives you extra medicine or a prescription for your sex partner(s) so they can also be treated for gonorrhea as soon as possible.

Where to Get Sexual Health Care

NYC Sexual Health Clinics offer low- to no-cost services for STIs, including gonorrhea. Anyone 12 years and older can receive services, regardless of immigration status. Parental consent is not necessary.

To find other sexual and reproductive health providers near you, visit the NYC Health Map:

NYC Health Map

Antibiotic-Resistant Gonorrhea

Gonorrhea is a serious public health issue because around half of all gonorrhea infections are not effectively treated by at least one antibiotic (meaning they’re “resistant” to that antibiotic). Currently, there is only one effective treatment option for infections that are resistant to an antibiotic.

It is very important to get the right treatment from your health care provider. In some cases, a health care provider will recommend retesting to make sure your infection is cured.

Gonorrhea in Pregnancy

Gonorrhea can cause miscarriage and premature labor. It can also cause eye infections in a newborn infant. All pregnant people under 25 years old, and those 25 and older who may be at risk of getting an STI, should get tested for gonorrhea and other STIs including HIV as early as possible in pregnancy. If you are in one of these groups you should get tested again in the third trimester:

  • Pregnant people under age 25
  • People diagnosed with an STI during pregnancy
  • People with multiple partners, a new partner, or a partner who has been diagnosed with an STI

Pregnant people diagnosed with gonorrhea should get tested again within three months of the initial infection.

Additional Resources

More information