Gonorrhoeae In Children

Gonorrhoeae is a sexually transmitted infection (STI) that should not be recorded in children. N. gonorrhoeae bacteria are responsible for gonorrhea. These bacteria thrive in warm, moist environments, and the infection can develop in any of the body’s mucous membranes, including those in the genitals, mouth, throat, eyes, and rectum.

Child

Gonorrhea can pass from person to person through sexual contact that involves the penis, vagina, anus, or mouth. Males do not need to ejaculate to transmit or contract gonorrhea. It can also pass to a baby during delivery.

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Can A Child Get Gonorrhea

The answer is yes. How you may wonder since gonorrhoeae is an STI. Some research carried out in children between 1 and 12 years old who contracted gonorrhoeae showed that sexual contact was responsible for all the cases. Careful observation by the team reveals close family relations are responsible.

But can there be any slight chance that gonorrhoeae can be contracted by a child through another means? Well, very possible. Let's take a look at the risk factors.

Risk Factors For Gonorrhoeae

There are several risk factors that can increase the chance of gonorrhea:

Having a cut – The disease enters the bloodstream through an opening in the skin (like a cut).

Having a mother with chlamydia – It is possible for a mother to infect her child during vaginal childbirth.

Weakened immune system – Immune systems can be weakened by HIV/AIDS, immune-suppressing medications (organ transplants) or other reasons.

Looking at the risk factors, the cause of gonorrhea in children is very difficult to pinpoint. For it to be transmitted through a cut, the cut must be fresh and in contact with the body fluid of an infected person. And this is rarely possible.

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Children born with gonorrhoeae should be less than a year old. Lastly, children born with HIV/AIDS hardly survive up to a year to start experiencing gonorrhoeae infection. Not to mention organ transplant in children. This brings us full circle back to sexual contact.

So when your next ward is diagnosed with gonorrhea, boy or girl, put on your thinking cap and do the needful. There is a beast or vulture within your midst.