Gonorrhea is a very common sexually transmitted infection that affects the mucous membranes of the human genitals. This disease belongs to the group of sexually transmitted infections. What signs of gonorrhea in men can be and how to treat this disease will be discussed in this article.
Gonorrhea in men: causes
A man can become infected with gonorrhea sexually from a sick person. At the same time, directly during intimacy, gonococci will "pass" to the mucous membranes of the genital organs and invade them, provoking foci of the disease.
After the initial infection, the incubation period begins, when the disease is in a "quiet" state and does not manifest itself in any way. The duration of this period is on average two weeks. After this, the first symptoms of gonorrhea in men occur.
It is important to know that more than 40% of all patients who have been diagnosed with gonorrhea are homosexuals. For this reason, this group of people is compared at risk for infection.
Other pathways of gonorrhea infection (through a handshake, kiss, household items, etc.) are not observed.
Signs of gonorrhea in men
It is immediately worth noting that gonorrhea in men can have two forms of course: acute and chronic. Each of them is accompanied by its symptoms of gonorrhea in men.
Acute gonorrhea begins to manifest itself approximately on the fifteenth day after the initial infection (if the immunity is weakened, then the symptoms may occur even earlier).
First, a person begins to worry about discomfort in the genital area - there is an unpleasant itching and burning sensation when urinating. At first, these signs will be not pronounced, and do not occur often, however, as the disease progresses, itching and burning will become permanent. They also attach soreness and frequent urination.
If at that moment you do not start therapeutic therapy, then a purulent lesion will join the above symptoms. Thus, unpleasant yellow discharge with a bad smell will be observed when pressing on the glans penis.
Gradually, the infection will further affect the genitals of the man and cause cystitis, severe inflammation, etc.
Also, with acute gonorrhea, an increase in inguinal lymph nodes, inflammation of the testicles and swelling of the tissues in the genital area of the man are often observed. The intimacy is very painful, during sexual intercourse blood may be released from the urethra.
The general condition of the patient with the defeat of this infection also worsens significantly. Thus, a person may have a high body temperature, be weak, chills, fever. Often, at the same time, the patient is disturbed by a headache and malaise.
Signs of chronic gonorrhea in men
Doctors believe that acute gonorrhea lasts only two months and if treatment is not started during this time, the disease will become chronic.
Chronic gonorrhea in men has less pronounced symptoms than acute, but this does not at all make it less dangerous. On the contrary, it is a chronic infection that will affect the testes and prostate gland.
This form of the disease proceeds in waves - there are periods of exacerbations and subside. Most often, in this condition, a person feels pain during urination, discomfort during intercourse and slight discharge from the urethra. Constant weakness, malaise, loss of appetite and a decrease in sexual desire are also observed.
Treatment of gonorrhea in men
Before starting treatment, gonorrhea should be diagnosed. For this, the patient is recommended to undergo an examination by a doctor and pass a number of laboratory tests, among which the sowing from the urethra and PCR diagnostics are mandatory (needed to identify a specific pathogen).
Therapeutic therapy for gonorrhea in men largely depends on the form of the disease, its neglect, symptoms and general condition of the patient. It should always be treated under medical supervision.
Traditional treatment involves the following:
1. The purpose of antibiotic therapy is the basis for the treatment of gonorrhea, because it is these drugs that can most effectively suppress the activity of infection. Typically, such drugs are prescribed for this purpose: Cefixime, Azithromycin, Ceftriaxone, Ofloxacin. Amoxicillin and Kanamycin may also be prescribed.
The duration of antibiotic therapy should be at least two weeks (in acute gonorrhea). If the patient has a chronic form of the disease, then he will need several courses of antibiotic therapy to achieve treatment success.
After such treatment, the patient charmingly needs to be tested to be able to control the course of the disease and the reaction of the infection to the antibiotics used.
Typically, these drugs have a positive effect already in the second week of use, but with insufficient effectiveness, the drug is replaced by an analog.
2. To remove the inflammatory process, anti-inflammatory drugs (Diclofenac) are prescribed to the patient.
3. Analgesics are used for pain.
4. At elevated body temperature, antipyretic drugs are prescribed.
5. Immunomodulators can be used to strengthen immunity. Vitamins are also often prescribed.
Moreover, during treatment, the patient should adhere to the following doctor's recommendations:
1. Refuse from any physical exertion, as well as psycho-emotional overstrain.
2. Stop smoking and drinking alcohol.
3. Review your diet and remove junk food from it. Instead, enrich the menu with protein products and fiber, thus adding more fruits, vegetables, fish, meat and seafood to it. This is necessary in order to give the body the strength to fight the infection.
4. Have a healthy sleep and rest.
5. Refrain from intimacy until complete cure.
In addition, it is worth knowing that the treatment of gonorrhea should be carried out by both partners, otherwise there will be no effect from therapy, because a person will simply be infected again from a sick partner. You can’t hide this, because the infection harms everyone who is diagnosed with it.
Sometimes with gonorrhea, the patient requires urgent hospitalization. Indications for it are the following conditions:
1. The development of sepsis.
2. A complication of gonorrhea in the kidney.
3. Strong pain.
4. Acute inflammatory process, which is accompanied by purulent discharge and high fever.
Treatment of gonorrhea in men: features of prevention and complications
Inadequately started treatment of gonorrhea in men can lead to the transition of the disease into a chronic form. In this case, the patient’s condition worsens significantly, because he becomes more prone to the following possible complications:
1. Inflammation of the glans penis or balanitis is one of the most common complications of gonorrhea in men.
2. Lymphangitis is a condition in which gonorrhea pathogens penetrate the lymph vessels and cause inflammation. This condition is very serious and requires complex drug therapy.
3. Narrowing of the urethra, which will make it difficult for a person to urinate.
4. Infertility.
5. Inflammation of the testicles or orchitis.
6. Prostatitis can occur as a result of the chronic course of gonorrhea in men.
7. Epididymitis.
To reduce the risk of contracting gonorrhea, men should adhere to the following doctor's recommendations:
1. Carefully observe intimate hygiene.
2. Do not practice casual sexual intercourse, especially without using a condom.
3. Have one permanent proven sexual partner.
4. Conduct regular medical examinations and take tests to prevent gonorrhea and other sexually transmitted diseases.
5. When the first signs of gonorrhea appear, it is very important to contact a urologist as soon as possible and conduct a diagnosis until the disease has become chronic.
Gonorrhea in men is a very common disease, which, unfortunately, is usually detected in an already neglected form, since men are embarrassed by this and prefer to delay going to the doctor. Despite this, only timely treatment can relieve a person of this kind of infection.
