Article 145: Medicinal Diets and Daily Precautions for Gonorrhea, and an Overview of Non-gonococcal Urethritis

◇A Guide to Caring for Your Husband's Health as a Good Wife◇

Next chapter: CHANG JIAN BING DE ZHI LIAO YU TIAO YANG

Treatment and recuperation of common diseases

Medicinal diet for treating gonorrhea

1. Steep 50 grams of plantain, 10 grams of Imperata cylindrica root, and 10 grams of bamboo leaves in boiling water and drink as tea, twice a day.

2. Take 40 grams of fresh plantain, 250 grams of winter melon, and 30 grams of red beans, wash them, boil them into a soup, and drink it once a day.

3. Boil 20 grams of wolfberry, 20 grams of coix seed, and 30 grams of Imperata cylindrica root together in water and drink the decoction, one dose per day.

4. Take 50g of fresh Patrinia scabiosifolia, 50g of fresh Hedyotis diffusa, 30g of fresh Plantago asiatica, 10g of dried tangerine peel, 10g of ginger, and appropriate amounts of lotus root starch and rock sugar. Wash the first four herbs and place them in a clay pot with the ginger. Add an appropriate amount of water and simmer over low heat for 30-40 minutes. Strain the liquid to remove the dregs. Add rock sugar and moistened lotus root starch to the liquid, and let it cool to form a thick soup. Consume morning and evening daily.

Internal treatment is the primary approach after contracting gonorrhea, but certain topical cleansers can also be helpful. This is because topical cleansers can directly kill bacteria in the affected area and wash away purulent discharge. Commonly used topical cleansers include 3% boric acid solution, 0.1% rivanol, skin-comforting wash, and Jieeryin wash. If necessary, a decoction of 30 grams each of purslane, phellodendron bark, wild chrysanthemum, and sophora flavescens can be used to wash the genital area after it has cooled to a warm temperature.

What should we pay attention to in daily life?

1. If either spouse has gonorrhea, the other spouse, even if asymptomatic, must also undergo examination and treatment at a hospital. Sexual intercourse is prohibited during treatment.

2. Whether a patient actually has gonorrhea or suspects they have it, the right choice is to go to the hospital for a proper and comprehensive examination and treatment. Treatment must be strictly followed according to the medication regimen, using the full dosage, completing the full course of treatment, and having regular follow-up examinations. If treatment is discontinued prematurely as soon as symptoms improve, the condition may become chronic and may lead to antibiotic resistance.

3. Maintain good hygiene: Wash the vulva daily, change underwear daily, and wash and boil your own underwear separately for disinfection. Disinfect any utensils or towels contaminated with the patient's secretions promptly. Maintain isolation from family members, and wash hands with soap before and after using the toilet.

4. Avoid rubbing your eyes with contaminated hands or towels to prevent gonococcal conjunctivitis.

5. Adjust your diet: When suffering from acute gonorrhea, the vulva is red, swollen and painful, which is a damp-heat syndrome in traditional Chinese medicine. Therefore, you should avoid eating spicy and heat-inducing foods. When suffering from chronic gonorrhea for a long time, due to the depletion of kidney yin, you should eat more pork, fish, dried shrimp, wolfberry, nuts and other foods to supplement protein, strengthen the waist and kidneys, and enhance your physical fitness to resist residual pathogens.

When can I resume sexual activity after contracting gonorrhea?

1. If gonorrhea is diagnosed by a qualified specialist, a urine smear and culture must be performed on the 4th and 8th days after the completion of the standard treatment course. If gonococci are found in the culture or smear, or if symptoms such as frequent and painful urination, urethral itching, and purulent discharge from the urethra reappear, treatment must be repeated.

2. Those who have been completely cured (i.e., asymptomatic and with negative cultures/smears) can have sexual intercourse, but must use condoms for one month. This is because gonorrhea is quite stubborn and recurrence is common after intercourse. If there is no recurrence within one month, normal sexual activity can resume from the second month onwards.

3. For those who are not completely cured, i.e., have urinary tract irritation symptoms or positive smear cultures, sexual intercourse is not advisable, and treatment should continue. Furthermore, home isolation should be implemented; underwear should be ironed and sun-dried, and blankets, bedding, bath utensils, toilet seats, etc., should be kept separate.

How to prevent

1. Upholding monogamy and monogamy is a traditional Chinese sexual morality and an important means of preventing the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). If one spouse contracts an STD, they should receive timely treatment and resume sexual intercourse only after being cured, or be encouraged to use condoms.

2. Patients diagnosed with gonorrhea should receive prompt and thorough treatment. Those who have been cured should undergo regular follow-up examinations and necessary re-treatment to ensure a complete cure and prevent recurrence. To prevent the spread of asymptomatic gonorrhea and the development of advanced complications, preventative treatment should be administered when necessary.

3. Pay attention to personal hygiene. Gonorrhea patients should avoid public places such as public bathhouses, public toilets, and restaurants until cured. Items contaminated by gonorrhea patients, including bedding, clothing, and other daily necessities, should be disinfected promptly. Gonorrhea patients should avoid sharing beds, bathtubs, and towels with children, especially young girls.

4. Newborns of pregnant women with gonorrhea should be given silver nitrate eye drops immediately after birth for prevention.

Nongonococcal urethritis

Non-gonococcal urethritis refers to urethritis transmitted through sexual contact. Because gonococci have an activating and promoting effect on chlamydia infection, this disease often coexists with gonorrhea. It commonly occurs in sexually active young adults. The disease is localized to the urethra, and the prognosis is relatively good.

Causes of disease

The main pathogen of non-gonococcal urethritis is Chlamydia trachomatis, followed by Mycoplasma. Other pathogens include Trichomonas vaginalis, herpes simplex virus, Candida albicans, Haemophilus vaginalis, and Pseudomonas syringae.

1. Chlamydia: Spherical in shape, can be stained with Giemsa stain but not with Gram stain. Its characteristics among microorganisms are intermediate between those of rickettsiae and viruses. After infecting the human body, Chlamydia multiplies in susceptible cells, inhibits host cell metabolism, dissolves and destroys cells, and its metabolic products have endotoxin effects and can cause allergic reactions.

2. Mycoplasma: The smallest and simplest free-living prokaryotes. After infecting the human body, they cause cell membrane damage or toxic effects due to their metabolic products by adhering to receptors on host cells.

Transmission routes

This disease is primarily transmitted through sexual contact, with the source of infection being patients with non-gonococcal urethritis and carriers of the pathogen. Asymptomatic female carriers are the most important source of infection. Transmission routes include:

1. Sexual transmission: Sexual contact with an infected person or carrier of the pathogen can lead to infection. Promiscuous sexual relationships, early onset of sexual activity, and failure to use condoms can increase the incidence rate.

2. Mother-to-child transmission: If the mother is infected with the pathogen, the newborn may develop eye, throat, or genital infections when passing through the birth canal, and may even develop pneumonia.

3. Indirect transmission: Transmission can occur through clothing, utensils, etc., and is especially common in children. Obstetric and gynecological examination instruments that have not been strictly sterilized may also become a transmission medium.

4. Autoinfection: Pathogens can be transmitted from the genital tract to the eyes or throat through the hands or contaminated objects.