YOUR FAMILY

HEEDS PROTECTION AGAINST GONORRHEA

YOUR WIFE OR HUSBAND AND CHILDREN SHOULD BE EXAMINED AND TREATED IF NECESSARY

GONORRHEA & CHLAMYDIA

GONORRHEA & CHLAMYDIA SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASES Gonorrhea and chlamydia are sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) that infect the anus, female cervix and vaginal glands, and male urethra. Chlamydia can also infect the female urethra. Both can cause painful, burning urination and discharge from the penis, vagina, or anus, but most women and many men show no symptoms while infected. Untreated, these STDs can eventually spread up the reproductive tract. More serious in women, this infection of the uterus and Fallopian tubes is called pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). If PID spreads into the abdominal cavity, a life-threatening infection can result. If scar tissue blocks both Fallopian tubes, sterility results. If the tubes are partly blocked, a fertilized egg can get stuck and grow in a tube, leading to internal hemorrhage and death.

Gonorrhea can cause blindness in babies infected by their mothers during birth. This is prevented with silver nitrate or antibiotic eye-drops. Adults can get gonorrhea in their eyes, too, by contaminating them with pus from an infected area. Chlamydia can also be transmitted during birth. Results are less severe for the infant, but the mother may become seriously ill after delivery.

Testing for gonorrhea and chlamydia requires collecting a mucus sample from the infected site and sometimes taking a urine sample. These STDs are treated with antibiotics, usually simultaneously, because one may mask evidence of the other's presence.

Gonorrhea and chlamydia are transmitted during anal and vaginal sex. Gonorrhea can be spread during oral sex and is more likely to result from oral sex performed on a man than on a woman. Condoms and dental dams can help protect you from these STDs., Next Card 77: HERPES & GENITAL WARTS: Sexually Transmitted Diseases

AIDS AWARENESS: PEOPLE WITH AIDS

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