Medical experts say that sexually transmitted infections do not only affect the genital areas but could also cause eye infections, such as gonorrhoea conjunctivitis when the infected genital fluid is transferred to the eyes.
They noted that the contact of the eyes with the infected genital area during oral sex, vaginal childbirth and rubbing of the eyes with hands that had touched the infected genital areas, could transmit the diseases, leading to an eye infection.
The physicians noted that if the eye infection was not properly treated, it could lead to the perforation of the eyeball.
Centres for Disease Control and Prevention defines gonorrhoea as a sexually transmitted disease that can cause infection in the genitals, rectum and throat.
It added that it was a common disease among young people and could sometimes present without the commonly known symptom of painful urination and abnormal discharge from the penis or vagina.
According to the World Health Organisation, the prevalence of gonorrhoea is high among vulnerable populations such as persons with different sexual orientations and commercial sex workers.
In a post by a health and wellness brand, Healthline, gonococcal conjunctivitis, also known as pink eye, is an infection that develops due to gonorrhoea infection.
It added that the infection was mostly common among newborns that got infected from their mother’s birth canal.
Adults are infected when the infected fluid spreads from theirs or someone else’s genital areas into another person’s eyes.
A study by Abdulsalam Mohammed, published in the Nigerian Journal of Basic and Clinical Sciences reports that neonatal conjunctivitis remains the major cause of preventable childhood blindness in developing countries.
Also, another study by Sunday Okonkwo and Ed Nkanga on “Bilateral Gonococcal Conjunctivitis in An Adult: A Case Report”, noted that GC was a condition that could potentially lead to blindness and cause cornea injury.
Although there is no national data on the prevalence of the disease, several searches of independent research show that allergic and bacterial conjunctivitis were common causes of eye infections.
Speaking with PUNCH Healthwise, a professor of Ophthalmology at the Osun State University, Osogbo, Michaeline Isawumi, said that infections from the urinary tract can affect the eyes and cause gonorrhoea conjunctivitis.
The researcher on Childhood Eye Diseases and Blindness further noted that if gonorrhoea conjunctivitis was not properly treated, it could lead to the perforation of the eyeball.
She called for the adoption of good hand hygiene to prevent eye infections.
Isawumi, who is the Provost of the College of Health Sciences at OSU, said, “Infections from the urinary tract can infect the eyes and lead to gonorrhoea conjunctivitis, which can lead to perforation of the eyeball if not properly treated. Living in a dirty environment and areas where there is poor or lack of water propagates infections such as trachoma conjunctivitis.
“One must have good hand hygiene to prevent eye infections. For example, washing hands regularly, particularly after toileting. Regular face washing and hand-washing can prevent eye infections.”
Also, an obstetrician and gynaecologist at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Professor Abubakar Panti, stated that chlamydia and gonorrhoea were two genital tract infections that could cause conjunctivitis either in a newborn baby or a sexual partner.
He said, “It is possible that someone who has genital gonorrhoea and through one way or the other, the genital fluid gets into the eyes (of the person or another person) cause conjunctivitis. It is also possible that for someone who has a type of vaginal discharge called Trichomoniasis if it gets to the eyes, it can also cause conjunctivitis.
“But this is commonly transmitted when a mother who has these infections infects the baby during the process of childbirth. It can also get into the eyes directly through genital fluid or the semen for those who have oral sex or when infected people rub their eyes after touching the infected fluids.”
Also, a public health expert, Dr Tuyi Mebawondu, stated that pregnant mothers with gonorrhoea infection were at risk of infecting their babies with gonorrhoea conjunctivitis during vaginal births.
He added that such cases were common among babies, noting that such babies, two weeks after delivery, begin to have pus in the eyes, watery and red eyes and fever.
Mebawondu also said that such babies must be treated immediately to prevent damage to the eyes and subsequent blindness.
The public health practitioner further noted that oral sex, cosmetic procedures and washcloths were other means of gonorrhoea transmission in adults.
“Other ways that these germs can be transmitted to the eyes are through oral sex. Nowadays, with the change in sexual practices, the contact of the mouth and eyes to the genital areas, these things can lead to infection of the eyes, especially when the woman has an infection in the vaginal tract.
“Rarely, we can also see infection from gonorrhoea being transmitted through eyelashes, cosmetics, washcloths and towels that were being used on the private parts and now on the face.
“But gonorrhoea is less likely to be transmitted from the hand to the eyes because the bacteria are exposed to a dry surface, it dies instantly. It needs a moist situation to move from one part of the body to the other,” he said.
The physician further mentioned that there were rare cases of gonorrhoea eye infection contracted when swimming in the same pool with someone with gonorrhoea infection.
The doctor also said that the major sexually transmitted infection that could be transmitted from the hand to the eye was chlamydia, a common STD that usually showed no symptoms and could cause permanent damage to a woman’s reproductive organ.
Mebawondu said, “When someone touches the genitals and rubs the eyes with such the hands, chlamydia can be transferred. It can affect one eye or both eyes. For gonorrhoea, it affects both eyes while Chlamydia can affect either one or both eyes. The eyes are red and watery and sometimes they are asymptomatic in the genital areas. So sexually active persons with an eye discharge could be asked for their history of gonorrhoea.”
The doctor further mentioned that gonorrhoea infection of the eyes in babies, which presents as high fever, pain, pus, difficulty in opening the eyes and redness of the eyes, should be immediately treated.
He added that in adults, the symptoms of gonorrhoea eye infections included, redness of the eyes, watery eyes, pus and pain in the eyes, and difficulty looking at light.
He stated that Chlamydia symptoms included watery and itchy eyes on either one or both eyes.
The public health expert stated that in persons with some forms of conjunctivitis that the “evaluation of the STI status is important and these can be treated with antibiotics.”
Mebawondu called for a healthy eye habit, urging people to desist from rubbing their eyes with their hands, regularly wash their hands and present early to the hospital at the outset of any eye infections.(Punch)
