Gonorrhea Now Requires A Shot & A Pill

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The CDC has changed their treatment plan for Gonorrhea. Unfortunately there is now only one drug that is effective at stopping it, and it must be injected. Once that drug stops being effective we're sorta fucked and Gonorrhea will be a pretty serious problem.

Here is the NYSDOH's summary of the CDC's new recommendations...

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[TD=align: left]Cefixime Should Not Be Used as First-Line Treatment for Gonorrhea [/TD]

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[TD=colspan: 2, align: left]The most significant change to the new guidelines is that CDC no longer recommends the use of the oral antibiotic cefixime, marketed under the brand name Suprax, as a first-line treatment option for gonorrhea because of recent laboratory surveillance data suggesting that oral antibiotic use is becoming less effective for treating gonorrhea.[/TD]

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[TD=align: left]Ceftriaxone Plus Either Azithromycin or Doxycycline Should Be Used as First-Line Treatment[/TD]

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• The CDC's change leaves only one recommended drug proven effective for the treatment of gonorrhea, the injectable antibiotic ceftriaxone.
  
• According to the NYSDOH and CDC, the most effective treatment for uncomplicated gonorrhea infection of the cervix, urethra, rectum, or pharynx is a combination therapy: the injectable antibiotic ceftriaxone (250 mg IM) along with one of two other oral antibiotics, either azithromycin (as a single 1-g dose) or doxycycline (100 mg orally twice daily for 7 days).
  
• When paired with one of the recommended additional oral antibiotics, ceftriaxone might slow the emergence of drug resistance by ensuring that gonorrhea infections are quickly cured.
  

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[TD=align: left]If an Oral Regimen Is the Only Option, Then a Test of Cure Should Be Performed After One Week of Treatment [/TD]

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[TD=colspan: 2, align: left]If an oral regimen is the only option, then a test of cure should be performed 1 week after treatment with one of the two alternative regimens for situations in which ceftriaxone is unavailable or when patients have a severe cephalosporin allergy:

• If ceftriaxone is unavailable: Cefixime 400 mg in a single oral dose PLUS azithromycin 1 g orally in a single dose or doxycycline 100 mg orally twice daily for 7 days PLUS test of cure in 1 week
  
• For patients with severe cephalosporin allergy: Azithromycin 2 g in a single oral dose PLUS test of cure in 1 week
  

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If you get gonorrhea, make sure your doctor treats you properly. And definitely try hard not to pass gonorrhea on to others. While it may have been trivial in the past, it isn't anymore. Take it very seriously.