Gonorrhea Test: MedlinePlus Medical Test

What is a gonorrhea test?

Gonorrhea is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). It is a bacterial infection. Anyone can get gonorrhea if they have vaginal, oral, or anal sex with someone who has the infection. The bacteria often infect the genitals, but it can infect the rectum, throat, eyes, and other parts of the body.

A gonorrhea test looks for signs of gonorrhea bacteria in a sample of fluid from your body. The fluid used depends on the type of gonorrhea test and where the infection may be. Samples may include:

• Urine (pee)
• Fluid that's swabbed from the part of your body that may be infected, including the:
  • Urethra (the tube that carries urine out of the body in males and females)
  • Cervix (lower part of the uterus)
  • Vagina
  • Throat
  • Rectum (the last part of your intestine that connects to the anus)

Gonorrhea often has no symptoms, so you may spread it to others without even knowing you have the infection. If a pregnant person has gonorrhea, they can give the infection to the baby during childbirth. In babies, the disease usually affects the eyes.

Gonorrhea can be cured with antibiotics. But if it's not treated, it can lead to serious health problems:

• In the female reproductive system gonorrhea can cause:
  • Pelvic inflammatory disease
  • Infertility or ectopic pregnancy
  • Long-term pelvic pain
• In the male reproductive system gonorrhea can cause:
  • Pain in the testicles
  • Infertility (uncommon)
• Blood infection, which can be life-threatening
• In babies, gonorrhea can cause blindness, joint infections, or life-threatening blood infections.

A gonorrhea test can help you catch the disease early so you can get treatment before you develop lasting health problems or spread it to others.

Other names: GC test, gonorrhea DNA probe test, gonorrhea nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT), GC culture