Why Is Gonorrhea Called The Clap?

Gonorrhea STD in slang is known as “the clap”. This is a very contagious (STD) sexually transmitted disease. Gonorrhea, the clap STD can be transmitted through physical contact through virginal, anal, and oral sex, which can infect the penis, rectum, vagina, eyes, and throat. In some cases, this can be transmitted from mother to baby during pregnancy. On an estimation from medical authorities around 600,000 individuals per annum are gonorrhea diagnosed.

It is a bacterial infection that affects both men’s and women’s health. Men are more likely to exhibit symptoms associated with the clap disease. The infection is caused by the Neisseria gonorrhea bacterium, also known as the gonococcus. The ones who do display the signs suffer from painful urination, testicular discomfort due to pain and swelling in one of the testicles, or a pus-like discharge. Whilst oral gonorrhea is a growing concern, people tend to have a sore throat.

Majorly this happens during sexual intercourse, the infection can damage your genitals throat, cervix, rectum, and eyes. The most common age group that is infected by it is from 15-24 years old due to unawareness and not getting STD tested before contacting.

Book An Appointment

What Are The Symptoms Of Gonorrhea?

After exposure to clap gonorrhea, the symptoms may appear within 2-15 days but all people do not experience any kind of symptoms that can be noticed. Males and females will face different symptoms.

You may also experience different symptoms in your body which include:

A sore throat and swollen nodes is a direct indication of gonorrhea in the throat
Rectum infections include rapid itching in the anal, very hard bowel movements in the stomach, blood spots on tissue after using the toilet, and pus-like discharge as well
Pain in both eyes, light sensitivity, and pus-like discharge are common in this STD

Males can experience the clap symptoms within 1-3 days after getting infected:

Continuous Sore Throat
Pain and swelling in testicles
Redness and swelling at the tip of the penis
White, light green, beige, or yellow Pus-like discharge or dripping from the penis
frequent urge to urinate

The women experience virginal infections sometimes in the urination system as well. These symptoms may occur within 10 days after getting infected

increase in yellowish virginal discharge
Burning and burying type feeling during passing urine
frequent urge to urinate
pain during sexual activity
pain in the lower abdomen
fever
Sore throat or swollen lymph nodes
menstrual period

How To Diagnose Gonorrhea

If you think you are suffering from gonorrhea the clap then you should visit your primary care provider immediately. The primary care will collect samples by performing two different procedures which are

Urine test collection for bacterial tracing
collection of samples through cotton swabs from the urethra, vagina, throat, and rectum

As officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warn, 30 percent of new gonorrhea cases every year are already resistant to at least one drug.

How Gonorrhea Is Treated?

It is important to contact your physician immediately if you feel infected by the clap. Gonorrhea can be treated with an antibiotic course which can take up to a week. You should be required to get tested again after two weeks to make sure the disease is treated. After 3 months you have to retest again to make 100% sure the clap won’t come back again. It is recommended not to do any kind of physical activity with your partner until 7 days after you get your gonorrhea treatment and all kinds of tests show you are cured. This also includes not having any activity even if you put on your condom. However, babies born to birthing parents with untreated gonorrhea are at risk for serious complications like low birth weight and blindness.

What Happens If You Not Got Treatment Against Gonorrhea?

If you leave untreated gonorrhea it will cause you major and permanent health problems including eye, heart, joint, or heart damage.

The clap can cause damage to the tube which carries sperm and also cause infertility in men
pelvic inflammatory disease is the most common one in women if left untreated gonorrhea also can cause infertility as well

How To Prevent Gonorrhea?

The partner needs to tell their sexual health history for the past 6 months including if they are diagnosed with gonorrhea. This will require them to get tested so that they get tested before any activity for the safe side. It is also important to practice safe sex to prevent each other. This includes:

Use condoms with water-based lubricants
Limit your partners or have polygamy relations without having any STD
A regular checkup from your physician
Use dental dams for oral practice
avoid having intercourse with an infected sex partner until the gonorrhea treatment is finished

Who is at Risk for Gonorrhea?

Currently, teens and young adults are at the highest risk of gonorrhea. The highest infected age group is 15–24 years when they become sexually active. The risk is also for those people as well who are sexually active with new sexual partners and got infected from the clap. The highest risk factor is mentioned below

Already infected from clapping and making sexual contact or transmitted infections
unprotected contact with a person who has other sexual partners
making physical relation to a person who has not recently tested
unprotected sex with more than one person

This is also important to get regular tests related to other sexually transmitted infections which include syphilis, chlamydia, and HIV if you have unprotected contact. Gonorrhea infection is a serious disease, if left untreated, the infection spreads to the joints and can even be fatal. However, Some of the complications that untreated gonorrhea can result in include: Pelvic inflammatory disease if the infection spreads to the reproductive organs.

If you’re wondering why is gonorrhea called clap, then gonorrhea has been referred to as ‘the clap” since the 1500s. It is also called a “clapier” a French word. The clapped slang was coined at the same time as the term for the disease itself. It is common to refer to an STD by a slang term due to the taboo and social stigma that surrounds discussing or talking about it. Many STDs have slang terms attached to them like AIDS is sometimes called Hi-Five, and syphilis is referred to as “syph” or “lues”. Sometimes people confuse chlamydia as the clap std because the actual chlamydia nickname is very similar to the clap std. Chlamydia is referred to as “the clam”.

The slang or nicknames for the clap disease are usually based on the disease itself or a very prominent aspect that defines the disease. As for the clap, there are different theories speculating on the origin of the term. If you are suffering from such kind of symptoms, contact the nearest general physician to get proper knowledge about your condition

Get Tested for STDs

What is the Clap Sexually Transmitted Disease? – Theories

Many people have the same question What is the Clap STD? There are various theories around the term “the clap”. Here we mention three of why gonorrhea is called the clap std.

Some etymologists believe that the term is based on an old-archaic English word “clappan” which means “beating or throbbing”. This can be used to define the symptoms caused by gonorrhea, like painful urination and swelling of the penis or vagina.
According to another theory the term is derived from the French word “clapier” which refers to brothels. In the middle French language dating back around the 1500s, the word clapper was used to refer to a rabbit’s nest. Due to the very active sex lives of rabbits, the term started being used for brothels too. During that time, brothels were where people extracted such diseases, so people started using the term for the disease itself. Gonorrhea was referred to as “clapier bubo”. Bubo was the inflamed lymph node in the groin area.
Some people believe that the term was coined about the treatment used for gonorrhea in medieval times. The treatment for gonorrhea in males involved clapping or smashing the penis with both hands at the same time to get rid of the pus or discharge in the urethra. The treatment caused major damage and did not get rid of the infection as well.

Gonorrhea – The Clap STD | In Recent Times

Gonorrhea, or “the clap” is usually treated using antibiotics. Gonorrhea has been showing signs of resistance since the early 1940s. This is worry-some as no stand-alone therapies are waiting as backups.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that less complicated gonorrhea can be treated using antibiotics like ceftriaxone, which is administered through an injection. If someone is allergic to ceftriaxone, they can be given oral gemifloxacin or injectable gentamicin. It can be transmitted via vaginal, oral, or anal sex and can be easily cured with antibiotic treatment. Dr Syra Hanif, a renowned preventive care expert in Manhattan shared her expert review of many types of research on how to prevent these infections and diseases.

Final Word

STD testing is recommended for people who have an active sex life, and even if you don’t, it’s good to stay ahead of things. Gonorrhea has been very prevalent since medieval times. Manhattan Medical Arts offers STD testing so that you can keep your health and sexually active life in check. If you are unable to differentiate between sexually transmitted infection vs sexually transmitted disease then you should consult the nearest doctor for further assistance.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did gonorrhea get the name the clap?

"The clap" likely comes from the old practice of "clapping" or squeezing the penis to expel pus from gonorrhea infections.

How did they cure the clap in the old days?

In the past, treatments included mercury-based ointments and other harsh remedies, which were often ineffective and damaging.

How is Sexually Transmitted Infection caught?

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are caught through direct sexual contact with an infected person, including vaginal intercourse, anal sex, or oral sex.

Can a virgin catch Sexually Transmitted Infections?

Yes, a virgin can catch STIs through other forms of sexual activity or contact with infected bodily fluids.

What STD cannot be cured?

Herpes and HIV are examples of Sexually transmitted diseases that cannot be cured and, only be managed with medication. A disseminated gonococcal infection, happens when the infection spreads to the blood or the joints.

Does oral sex cause gonorrhea?

Yes, oral sex can transmit gonorrhea, especially if there is contact with an infected partner’s genital or throat secretions.