Gonorrhea for 6 years

[Dhruv_78]

Hi Dr.,
I had an encounter in early 2007 whereby I got either chlamydia or gonorrhea. I returned to my home country thereafter. 10 days after exposure, I started having penile pain & discharge along with frequent urination & burning feet/hands.The doctor gave me Azithromycin(1g), Doxy for a week, followed by Augmentin for a week. I was tested for VDRL-RPR, Urinalysis(numerous WBC's & 2+ Bacteria), Urine Culture(no growth), Chlamydia antigen(neg), Hep Panel, HIV, TPHA, HSV1, HSV2. This pretty much made the complete STD panel test in my home country. The discharge, penile pain and frequent urination symptoms disappeared but burning hands and feet remained for next 2 years. My WBC(neutrophils) remained high till about the end of 2012. Early in 2012 I faced a major UTI issue with another gram negative bacteria(pseudomonas) found during Routine urnalysis and culture. It was a case of prostitis and was treated with multiple antibiotics again for a period of 1 full month. It was so bad that it caused bad case of sevre pain in shoulder, neck, back and legs with feet burning & temporary infertility. I am worried with the fact that it is gonorhea from way back in 2007 which is still causing my problems.i.e lower abdomen pain, red eyes, headache, backache & if I lift something moderately heavy, feel uneasy on penis head region etc. Do you think gonorrhea could still be a possibility and if so what should be done as there are no gonorrhea tests in my country.

[Edward W Hook, MD]

Welcome to the Forum.  The response of your symptoms to therapy in 2007 are highly suggestive that you were cured by the therapy you received which was more than enough therapy for the problem you had,  that you have had antibiotics since then for UTIs and prostate infection would simply add to the fact that your infection has occurred.  I am not aware of any instance in which untreated gonorrhea or chlamydial infection has persisted for more than 3 years and would not worry about it.  I see no reason for concern or for seeking testing.  If your fears require you to do so however, I know for a fact that tests for these infections are available in India and am confident that if you look hard enough for them, you can be tested.

I hope this comment is helpful. EWH

[Dhruv_78]

Thanks & Regards..

[Edward W Hook, MD]

You are worrying needlessly.  There is no such thing as "late stage" gonorrhea but if there were, it, like all gonorrhea would be easily treated.  

No, there is no meaningul risk of developing septic shock from gonorrhea for you.  

Please, I urge you, stay off the internet.  It will only mislead you. EWH

[Dhruv_78]

Thanks for your time and kind answer.
If I remember correctly the sequence of events from 2007, the doctors were correlating the antibiotic use looking at the WBC's. So, rather than administering the 3 medicines in sequence, it was more like there was a gap of a week between using each of them depending on where WBC's stood after use of a particular antibiotic(guniea pig practice unfortunately). And, furthermore, the urinalysis results I posted above (with numerous WBC's & 2+ bacteria), these were post antibiotic administration. Anyways, looking at what we have at hand now after 6+ years. I look forward to your final reply on my 4 queries below:

1. I take it that normally 3 years is plenty of time for the infection to resolve on its own without treatment and thanks for sharing your experience. It eases me out a bit. Internet was providing quite conflicting viewpoint whether the infection does resolve on its own or not. If you need to add anything, feel free to respond to this point.

2. In the meantime I look out for specific gonorrhea test, if I find one and I turn out positive, does it spell doom for me with the knowledge that I might have had it for last 7 years and this might have caused major damage.

3. Is late stage gonorrhea equally curable?

4. Is there a chance of septic shock from gonorrhea or something like that for myself. (This may sound stupid but still an answer would be helpful. Please bear with my not too reliable internet medical knowledge which I am not too proud off)

Again, thanks for your time and response. There is too much information out on the web which confuses. I have a great regard for healthcare in India & there are many quality doctors but sometimes the commercial aspect of things just meddles with fine medical practices and creates confusion for the patient. Thanks for running this website and its great to have yourself and Dr. H around here for making lives easier for lost souls like myself.