Catch a Whiff From Your New Date? It Could be Gonorrhea

Gonorrhea is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections with over 700,000 infections in the United States every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms can take days or weeks to show or may not show at all -- increasing the odds of further infections.

According to EmpowHER's in-depth Gonorrhea page:

People with gonorrhea may experience some, all, or none of the following symptoms:

Men:
Discharge from the penis

Burning sensation while urinating
Tender or swollen testicles

Women:
Burning sensation while urinating
Abnormal vaginal discharge
Abdominal pain
Unusual vaginal bleeding

Men and Women:
Anal itching
Soreness
Bleeding
Painful bowel movements
Eye infections
Blood infections

People with these symptoms or who think they may have come into contact with the infection should see their doctor.

The Journal of Sexual Medicine has published a Russian study from the Institute of Cytology and Genetics in Novosibirsk that found men with gonorrhea emit a certain rather vile body odor, as described by adult women who were part of the study. Their smell differed quite significantly from men without the sexually transmitted infection.

Since female lab animals (rats) use their sense of smell to sniff out diseased males in order to avoid mating with them, they decided to see if this method of survival and healthy procreation also works in humans. It seems like it may.

The scientists took samples of underarm body odor and saliva of thirteen men infected with gonorrhea, sixteen men with no infections and five men who had been successfully treated for gonorrhea. After smelling the various samples, it was determined that the samples from infected males were described as "putrid", compared to the less offensive smell of their healthier counterparts.

The conclusion of the study stated that this ability to determine the health of a potential mate via their scent is an evolutionary process that helps to avoid contact with a diseased partner.

SOURCES:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Gonorrhea - CDC Fact Sheet. Web. December 19th, 2011.
http://www.cdc.gov/std/gonorrhea/STDFact-gonorrhea.htm

EmpowHER.com. Gonorrhea Symptoms & Diagnosis. Web. December 19th, 2011. https://www.empowher.com/condition/gonorrhea/symptoms

Medical News Today. Unpleasant Smell Linked To Gonorrhea In Men. Web. December 19th, 2011. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/238985.php

Reviewed December 20, 2011
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith

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Tags:

• Sexually Transmitted Diseases