We determined the conditions of 26 women who had recently been exposed to Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Infection was more common among women with more than one exposure (13/14) than among those with one exposure (6/12). Gonococcal infection was significantly associated with the presence of findings on physical examination suggestive of upper genital tract inflammation. Nine of 19 infected women had such findings; no uninfected women did. Among infected women, the prevalence of abnormal physical findings was 47% +/- 23% (95% confidence interval). These findings suggest that upper genital tract involvement is a common early complication of gonococcal infection.