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ESSENTIALS OF DIAGNOSIS
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ESSENTIALS OF DIAGNOSIS
Purulent, profuse urethral discharge with dysuria, especially in men; yields positive smear.
Men: urethritis, epididymitis, prostatitis, proctitis, pharyngitis.
Women: cervicitis with purulent discharge, or asymptomatic, yielding positive culture; vaginitis, salpingitis, proctitis also occur.
Disseminated disease: fever, rash, tenosynovitis, and arthritis.
The preferred method of diagnosis is testing with nucleic acid amplification.
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GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
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Gonorrhea is caused by Neisseria gonorrhoeae, a gram-negative diplococcus typically found inside polymorphonuclear cells. It is transmitted during sexual activity and has its greatest incidence in the 15- to 29-year-old age group. The incubation period is usually 2–8 days.
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A. Urethritis and Cervicitis
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Initial symptoms seen in men include burning on urination and a serous or milky discharge. One to 3 days later, the urethral pain is more pronounced, and the discharge becomes yellow, creamy, and profuse, sometimes blood-tinged. The disorder may regress and become chronic or progress to involve the prostate, epididymis, and periurethral glands with painful inflammation. Chronic infection leads to prostatitis and urethral strictures. Rectal infection is common in men who have sex with men. Other sites of primary infection (eg, the pharynx) must always be considered. Asymptomatic infection is common and occurs in both sexes.
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Gonococcal infection in women often presents with dysuria, urinary frequency, and urgency, with a purulent urethral discharge. Vaginitis and cervicitis with inflammation of Bartholin glands are common. Infection may be asymptomatic, with only slightly increased vaginal discharge and moderate cervicitis on examination. Infection may remain as a chronic cervicitis—an important reservoir of gonococci. It can progress to involve the uterus and tubes with acute and chronic salpingitis, with scarring of tubes and sterility. In pelvic inflammatory disease, anaerobes and chlamydia often accompany gonococci. Rectal infection may result from spread of the organism from the genital tract or from anal coitus.
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Nucleic acid amplification tests are the preferred method for diagnosing gonorrhea at all sites given their excellent sensitivity and specificity. In women with suspected cervical infection, endocervical or vaginal swabs (clinician- or self-collected) as well as first catch am urine specimen (later specimens have 10% reduced sensitivity) are options. In men with urethral infection, first catch am urine is recommended. Nucleic acid amplification tests are also recommended by the CDC for oropharyngeal and rectal site swab testing. Urine testing does not detect oropharyngeal and rectal gonorrhea unless there is concurrent genital infection. Gram stain of urethral or rectal discharge in men, especially during the first week after onset, shows gram-negative diplococci in polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Gram stain is less often positive in women. Cultures should still be obtained when evaluating a treatment failure to assess for antimicrobial resistance.
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B. Disseminated Disease
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Systemic complications ...