A rather alarming report has reached us from the World Health Organization, which suggests that Gonorrhoea may soon be untreatable because of the overuse of antibiotics. The research is based on findings in Pacific Rim arms of the agency in Hong Kong, Australia and Japan.
Gonorrhoea is has proved resistant to front line antibiotics in some areas of the world for some time and it is now showing resistance to cephalosporin antibiotics, which are the final line of defence against the bacterium.
Gonorrhoea normally causes symptoms in men within 7 days of contracting the infection but around 10% of men do not show any symptoms at all. Immediate signs of an infection are not always present in women. Primary symptoms include a discharge along with pain in the urethra when passing urine. Longer term effects include pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy and infertility. Men sometimes get a swelling of the scrotum.
Gonorrhoea is very easily detected from a urine sample and most cases that are diagnosed in the UK are treated successfully using Cefixime. A postal STD testing service is available from The STI Clinic and the treatment is included in the price of the test.