Gonorrhea—Eye Infections

Your eyes can get infections from bacteria, fungi, or viruses. Eye infections can occur in different parts of the eye and can affect just one eye or both. Two common eye infections are

• Conjunctivitis – also known as pinkeye. Conjunctivitis is often due to an infection. Children frequently get it, and it is very contagious.
• Stye – a bump on the eyelid that happens when bacteria from your skin get into the hair follicle of an eyelash.

Symptoms of eye infections may include redness, itching, swelling, discharge, pain, or problems with vision. Treatment depends on the cause of the infection and may include compresses, eye drops, creams, or antibiotics.

• Blepharitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Corneal ulcers and infections (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Cytomegalovirus retinitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Dacryoadenitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Endophthalmitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Eye burning – itching and discharge (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Eye redness (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Meibomianitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Orbital cellulitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Parinaud oculoglandular syndrome (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Periorbital cellulitis (Medical Encyclopedia)

Also called: The clap

Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted disease. It is most common in young adults. The bacteria that cause gonorrhea can infect the genital tract, mouth, or anus. You can get gonorrhea during vaginal, oral, or anal sex with an infected partner. A pregnant woman can pass it to her baby during childbirth.

Gonorrhea does not always cause symptoms. In men, gonorrhea can cause pain when urinating and discharge from the penis. If untreated, it can cause problems with the prostate and testicles.

In women, the early symptoms of gonorrhea often are mild. Later, it can cause bleeding between periods, pain when urinating, and increased discharge from the vagina. If untreated, it can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, which causes problems with pregnancy and infertility.

Your health care provider will diagnose gonorrhea with lab tests. Treatment is with antibiotics. Treating gonorrhea is becoming more difficult because drug-resistant strains are increasing. Correct usage of latex condoms greatly reduces, but does not eliminate, the risk of catching or spreading gonorrhea.

NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

• Condom Fact Sheet in Brief (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) – PDF
• Endocervical gram stain (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Gonococcal arthritis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Gonorrhea (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Rectal culture (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Urethral discharge culture (Medical Encyclopedia)