By Fedor Villard-López
Miami-Dade Health
A super-resistant strain of gonorrhea was reported recently in England following warnings from public health experts that the common sexually transmitted disease is increasingly more difficult to treat.
According to health officials in that country, this is the first time that a case of gonorrhea could not be treated successfully with antibiotics that have been until now the first line of defense against the disease.
The emergence of cephalosporin-resistant gonorrhea would significantly impede providers to treat gonorrhea successfully since the medical community has few antibiotic options left that are simple, well-studied, well-tolerated and highly effective in common patients.
Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) that can infect both men and women. It causes infections in the genitals, rectum, and throat, and it’s very common among young people ages 15-24 years.
You can get gonorrhea by having vaginal, anal, or oral sex with someone who is infected. A pregnant woman with gonorrhea can give the infection to her baby during childbirth.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that the only way to avoid STDs is to not have vaginal, anal, or oral sex, but those who are sexually active can do the following to lower the chances of getting infected:
- Being in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship with a partner who has been tested and has negative STD test results;
- Using latex condoms every time you have sex.
