STI Of The Week....

So, I have decided that I am going to attempt to do a blog each week, and each week we will have a nominated *STI of the Week*!

Given the press coverage that we have seen this week, I have choosen for our first STI of the week to be.... (imagine the drumroll)

*GONORRHOEA*

Gonorrhoea is an STI caused by a bacteria. The bacteria can cause unpleasant discharge from the penis and vagina. It can be passed to others by sexual contact and sharing sex toys (unless they have been washed inbetween or had a fresh condom on them).
The symptoms of Gonorrheoa usually show up within 2 weeks of infection, however 10% of men and 50% of women may not actually notice any symptoms - how scary is that! - Women may have an unusual discharge from the vagina that may be green or yellow in colour, as well as pain when passing urine. Other symptoms for women may include pain or tenderness in the lower abdominal area and bleeding between periods, although these are less common. Men may have a discharge from the penis which may be green, yellow or white in colour. They may also have pain on passing urine, inflammation of the foreskin or (in a small proportion of cases) pain and tenderness of the testicles or prostate gland.
Luckily, treatment for Gonorrhoea is really easy, just one dose of antibiotics is usually enough to sort it out.. but that said, wouldn't you rather not have to go through the whole process? Yes I hear you cry.. Well then it's easy, make sure you use CONDOMS!

Here is Suffolk we are doing a drive on condoms with the much anticipated arrived of the new keyfob style C-Card, allowing access to free condoms in outlets all over Suffolk.
For more information on how to register for a C-Card and the outlets which are currently distributing, please visit the No Risks website.

Thats all for now folks.. check back next week to see what our STI of the week is! :)

Take care!