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Timing of symptoms
I received unprotected oral sex (fellatio) 2 weeks ago. If I were to contract gonorrhea or nongonococcal urethritis (NGU) and it were to produce symptoms such as urethral discharge and burning on urination, how long would it be after exposure for these symptoms to appear? Also, how soon after contact could I pass the infection to another partner? Thanks.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Yes. Among other things, NGU from oral sex is rarely if ever due to chlamydia; plus some cases maybe caused by normal oral bacteria.
Thanks for the information. A clarifying question...with respect to NGU, are you saying that NGU from oral sex may be different - in terms of causes and transmission - than NGU acquired from vaginal or anal sex? Thank you.
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Welcome to the forum.
Gonorrhea almost always causes symptoms within a week, usually 2-5 days. Almost all gonorrhea causes obvious symptoms, so at this point you can be quite sure you weren't infected.
NGU symptoms typically show up in 10-14 days and probably always within 3 weeks. So it is unlikely you were infected with NGU, but you should wait another week to be sure.
Gonorrhea can be transmitted as soon as it is acquired, certainly within a day or two. If you were infected and have been having sex with other partners, they are at risk. But as discussed above, it is very unlikely you caught gonorrhea.
NGU acquired by oral sex may not be transmissible to sex partners at all. We don't know the causes of NGU acquired by oral sex, but some cases may be caused by entirely normal oral bacteria that can cause urethral inflammation but likely would not be harmful in other persons' genital tracts.
Regards-- HHH, MD
Gonorrhea almost always causes symptoms within a week, usually 2-5 days. Almost all gonorrhea causes obvious symptoms, so at this point you can be quite sure you weren't infected.
NGU symptoms typically show up in 10-14 days and probably always within 3 weeks. So it is unlikely you were infected with NGU, but you should wait another week to be sure.
Gonorrhea can be transmitted as soon as it is acquired, certainly within a day or two. If you were infected and have been having sex with other partners, they are at risk. But as discussed above, it is very unlikely you caught gonorrhea.
NGU acquired by oral sex may not be transmissible to sex partners at all. We don't know the causes of NGU acquired by oral sex, but some cases may be caused by entirely normal oral bacteria that can cause urethral inflammation but likely would not be harmful in other persons' genital tracts.
Regards-- HHH, MD
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