Catching a sexually transmitted disease such as Gonorrhea symptoms may leave a person embarrassed and avoiding a visit to the doctor out of fear of the humiliation they might feel. Gonorrhea is no laughing matter however and if you think you may have that or any of the STDs; you should take steps to get yourself treated right away. Gonorrhea can cause complications and put you or your unborn child if you are pregnant at serious risk.  Gonorrhea symptoms usually start to appear about two to three days after you were infected.

Gonorrhea can be spread by not only vaginal sex but by anal and oral sex and can even be transmitted from hand to eye if the hand has touched an infected area. Pregnant women can pass this disease on to their children during childbirth.

Gonorrhea symptoms in women are abnormal vaginal discharge, abdominal pain, fever, burning while urinating, vomiting, and irregular periods. Women can also get gonorrhea in their throat and mouth via anal sex; symptoms of this include swollen glands and a sore throat. A rare condition called a disseminated gonococcal infection may also occur; Gonorrhea symptoms are fever, painful joints, rash, and sores on the feet, toes, fingers and hands.

For Men, Symptoms of Gonorrhea are usually much milder, with a burning sensation when urinating, and an abnormal discharge from the penis being the only noticeable symptoms. Many men will have no symptoms at all. Men may also get gonorrhea in the mouth, throat and eyes and symptoms will again be a sore throat and swollen glands.

Gonorrhea is usually diagnosed a bit differently in women than in men, for women a swab of the cervix is usually done and a culture is performed. For men the most accurate test is a gram stain test, where a sample of discharge is put under a microscope to observe if any bacteria are present.

Because gonorrhea left untreated can cause complications such as pelvic inflammatory disease in women, infertility and blindness if the infection reaches the eye, it is extremely important to get tested right away if you think you might have gonorrhea or any other STD. Treatment is easy, a course of the proper antibiotic will clear up this infection quickly. Treatment with antibiotics usually lasts for seven days and you should avoid all sexual contact for 14 days to avoid spreading the disease to anyone else.

Be sure to let your partner know if you have been diagnosed, as embarrassing as it may seem, if gonorrhea remains unchecked not only could you contract it again, it could be passed to others, and it could cause complications for your partner.