Gonorrhoea

What is gonorrhoea?

Gonorrhoea (also known as 'the clap') is a common sexually transmitted bacterial infection. It can affect the penis, cervix (inside the vagina), anus, throat or eyes.

How do you catch it?

Gonorrhoea is transmitted through unprotected sex (sex without a condom). This can be vaginal, anal or oral sex. A pregnant woman with gonorrhoea can also pass it onto her baby during birth.

How can I tell if I have it?

You can't always tell. Some people get gonorrhoea and have no symptoms, so you could pass it on without even knowing you have it.  If symptoms show, they appear within 2-7 days after contact, and can include:

• an unusual discharge from your vagina (sometimes yellow or bloody)
• an itchy, swollen or red vagina
• pain in your stomach
• pain during sex
• pain when you urinate

Men can have a discharge from the penis that is thick, white and yellow, burning pain when they urinate, and swollen testicles.

Both men and women can get a gonorrhoeal infection in their anus, and their symptoms might include:

• discharge
• an itchy bum
• soreness
• bleeding

Gonorrhoea can infect your throat too, via oral sex. It might give you a sore throat, but sometimes there are no symptoms.

What if I'm pregnant? Can I still get treated or will it harm my baby?

During birth, gonorrhoea can be passed from mother to baby and affect the baby's eyes. Without quick treatment, the eye damage can be serious and permanent. There are antibiotics that are safe for you to take when pregnant.

How can I prevent it?

Practicing safer sex by using condoms, dams and/or gloves every time you have sex will protect you from gonorrhoea. Body fluids like sperm, saliva, and vaginal lubricant can contain gonorrhoea, but dams and condoms form a barrier between you and your partner that can prevent the transfer of fluids. Check out the condoms factsheet for advice on how to use condoms correctly.

What happens in a gonorrhoea test?

For women, the doctor or nurse will take a sample from the cervix. This means they take some tissue from inside your vagina with a long cotton bud, and send it to a lab to be looked at under a microscope. For men, the doctor will take a sample from the opening of the penis. They may also take a urine sample, so it's a good idea not to urinate for two hours prior to the test. Your doctor or nurse can also examine a sample from your throat.

Many people infected with gonorrhoea also have chlamydia, another common STI (Check out chlamydia fact sheet). You may be tested and treated for this at the same time. For more information on chlamydia, check out the chlamydia factsheet.

How does the treatment work?

Once you've started taking antibiotics, the infection will clear up in about seven days - but you should avoid having sex in that period of time. About a month later you'll need a check-up to make sure the infection is completely gone.

Your current sexual partner needs to get treated too, so you don't pass the infection back and forth between you. All your partners over the last three months should also be contacted and treated. This is called 'contact tracing'. The doctor or nurse will give you a letter to give to all your partners so they can go to a doctor for treatment.

After your treatment is finished, if you have unprotected sex with somebody that has the infection, you can catch gonnorhoea again.

Will it go away if I ignore it?

No, you need to fix gonorrhoea with antibiotic pills. If it's not treated, gonorrhoea can lead to PID (Pelvic Inflammatory Disease) for women, or infertility for both men and women.  It can also increase your risk of getting or passing on HIV.

To find out where you can go for a sexual health check, call FP NSW Healthline on 1300 65 88 86 to talk to a reproductive and sexual health nurse. Talking to the nurse is confidential and anonymous.

If I go to a clinic will they tell my parents?

According to the law you can ask for and agree to medical care for yourself once you are 16 years old. At the sexual health clinic, discussion with you and the information you give the staff is completely confidential. It cannot be shared with your parents or people you know, unless the law requires staff to do so. 

An example of this would be if health staff thought you were at risk of serious harm. In this case the clinic is required to report this to DOCS (Department of Community Services). Another example might be if your files were required in a Court case.  If you are between 14 and 16 you may still be able to agree to your own medical care, but this can vary in individual cases.
 
Doctors are also required to report cases of gonorrhoea to the Government so they can monitor the disease in Australia. Your identifying details are not used here, though - just a number. They don't need to know who you are, but want to keep track of how many people are getting the infection.

For more information on STIs, having a sexual health check-up, and who to talk to in your State, call Healthline 1300 65 88 86, or visit www.fpahealth.org.au.