Chlamydia and Gonorrhea

Chlamydia and gonorrhea are two of the most common sexually transmitted infections among teens and young adults. Both have similar symptoms and treatment options. Many times, one is contracted along with the other. Here we feature chlamydia and gonorrhea.

Routine STD Testing for STDs like chlamydia and gonorrhea is one of the best ways to prevent the infection from catching or spreading. Often times, if you test positive for Gonorrhea, your doctor will recommend also getting tested for chlamydia as well. The infection often are contracted together and must be treated at the same time. The goal of treatment is to ensure both infections are cured through antibiotic treatments. Treatment is similar for both chlamydia and gonorrhea because there are so many similarities between the two bacterial infections.

Similarities in gonorrhea and chlamydia:
  • Both infections are spread through a strain of bacteria that is passed through sexual contact including genital to genital and genital to mouth. Ejaculation and actual sexual intercourse is not necessary to spread the disease.
  • Chlamydia and gonorrhea both can be spread to a baby during the birthing process if the mother is infected. The baby might develop eye infections, blood infections and pneumonia.
  • In the majority of the cases of both chlamydia and gonorrhea there are no outward visible signs or symptoms. In about 75 to 90 percent of cases of women infected, there are no signs of infection. Only about half of the cases of infected men exhibit outward symptoms.
  • Men are usually more likely to have symptoms that are visible and also have more severe symptoms than women.
Chlamydia and gonorrhea symptoms:
  • Stomach pain, throwing up and/or nausea
  • Bleeding or spotting in between menstrual cycles
  • Low-grade fever
  • Pain during intercourse
  • Painful, frequent or burning urination
  • Swelling and tenderness of the vulva
  • Yellow or greenish discharge
  • Itching on or around the anus
If left untreated, both chlamydia and gonorrhea can cause internal problems in both men and women like pelvic inflammatory disease in women and epididymis in men. Both complications can eventually lead to infertility and sterility if left untreated. Because there are so many silent symptoms with both chlamydia and gonorrhea, it is important for sexually active teens to remember the importance of getting tested for STDs regularly to make sure that if they are infected they can catch it and treat it early.
The differences between chlamydia and gonorrhea:
  • Gonorrhea is more likely to cause infection in the throat in addition to the genital region.
  • The rates of Chlamydia are more common that of Gonorrhea with more than 2.5 million new cases each year compared to 700,000 with Gonorrhea.
Gonorrhea and chlamydia prevention: 
  • Abstinence is the only 100 percent effective way to prevent catching or spreading an infection caused by gonorrhea or chlamydia.
  • Correctly using latex condoms each time you have sex or engaged in sex acts involving genital to genital or genital to mouth touching will also help cut down on the risk of transferring or catching the infection, although it is not 100 percent.
  • Engaging in sexual activities with one, uninfected partner in a monogamous relationship is another effective way to make sure you stay free from sexually transmitted infections like gonorrhea and chlamydia. Having more sexual partners increases your risk of becoming infected.
  • Getting tested frequently is the only way to find out for sure if you have chlamydia or gonorrhea if you are not experiencing symptoms. Knowing early will help you catch the infection before it causes increased damage internally.
Sources: http://www.got-chlamydia.info, plannedparenthood.org, cdc.gov

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