GIRL, 11, GETS GONORRHEA AFTER DIP IN HOT SPRING

An 11-year-old Austrian girl has been diagnosed with gonorrhea after returning from a family vacation in Italy where she reportedly bathed in a hot spring.

The girl first developed symptoms after bathing in a heavily frequented hot pool at the edge of crater lake Specchio di Venere (“Mirror of Venus”) on Pantelleria Island.

According to the case study published Sept. 17 in the Journal of Medical Case Reports, she developed vulvovaginitis — inflammation and irritation of the vagina or vulva, usually soothed with antifungal cream.

Vaginal swabs tested positive for Neisseria gonorrhoeae, a sexually transmitted bacterial infection. Her family members however tested negative.

Researchers learned that the family had waded into different pools at the lake, with her and her father entering one pool while her mother and sister went into another.

Although the disease can be transferred through sexual contact, the young girl adamantly denied have any contact of the kind, said researchers from New Zealand's University of Auckland and Austria's University of Salzburg in the study.

Experts believe the warm temperature, acidic nature of the water and presence of organic particles could explain why she was infected.

Her pediatrician recommended whey baths for two weeks to restore her vaginal flora and settle her symptoms. By week four, her swab came back negative.