Gonorrhoea's deadly spread through oral sex is untreatable, experts warn
Experts warn a drug-resistant gonorrhoea can spread during oral sex and infect a person's throat.
Scientists believe the threat acts as an unassuming haven for gonorrhoea that is creating a deadly crisis, the Daily Mail reported.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) revealed three people globally have already developed 'super gonorrhoea', which is not responding to any form of treatment.
In June, WHO warned of this kind of gonorrhoea due to oral sex and an alarming decline in condom use. It currently has no cure.
Facts about Gonorrhoea
* It is an STI, which is also known as 'the clap'
* Can infect the eyes, throat, genitals and rectum
* Spreads through unprotected vaginal, oral or anal sex
* An individual suffering from the disease cannot spread it by kissing
* An infected mother can pass on gonorrhoea to her child during labour
* Annually, Gonorrhoea infects around 78 million people
Dr Emilie Alirol is the head of the sexually transmitted infections program at the Global Antibiotics Research and Development Partnership in Geneva.
'The throat infections act as a silent reservoir," Dr Alirol is quoted as saying by the NY Times. Adding, "Transmission is very efficient from someone who has gonorrhoea in their throat to their partner via oral sex."
Antibiotics work in the work in the bloodstream. The reason oral infections are challenging to treat is because the throat has very few blood vessels. Therefore, scientists face a huge task to develop a treatment.
If left untreated, oral gonorrhoea can worsen and spread to the genitals in both females and males. Men can experience pelvic and testicular pain. Women increase their risk of infertility, pelvic inflammatory disease and ectopic pregnancies.
