Mycoplasma genitalium is also known as MG or Mgen. It's a sexually transmitted bacterium that infects the urinary and genital tracts, or the rectum.
MG can cause non-specific urethritis (NSU) in men and pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) in women.
Symptoms of MG
The majority of people with MG have no symptoms and the infection will clear itself naturally in some cases. Others may have one or more symptoms.
Signs and symptoms in the penis:
- pain when urinating
- a discharge
- pain in their testicles
- proctitis, an inflammation in the rectum causing anal pain and discharge.
Signs and symptoms in the vagina:
- vaginal discharge
- pain in the lower abdomen
- abnormal vaginal bleeding (intermenstrual bleeding)
- bleeding after sex
- PID has been linked to MG – PID can cause infertility and is also associated with pre-term births and spontaneous abortions.
Signs and symptoms in the anus:
- pain and discharge
- proctitis, an inflammation in the rectum causing anal pain and discharge.
Rectal MG infection is often asymptomatic, but not always.
More information about mycoplasma genitalium on Terrence Higgins Trust website