Just months after the discovery of an antibiotic-resistant strain in the north of England, new cases were confirmed in London and even in the south of the country.
British doctors are expressing “very great concern” about the risk of super-gonorrhea spreading widely across England. This strain is antibiotic resistant, that is to say, it is resistant to antibiotic treatments usually used to treat this sexually transmitted infection (STI).
This new strain of gonorrhea, also known as gonorrhea or “hot-piss”, was widely publicized when it was discovered in Leeds (northern England) last year. One of the main treatments, azithromycin, was found to be ineffective. The disease has since spread across the country, and doctors fear it will be only a matter of time before ceftriaxone, the other main treatment for gonorrhea, is revealed. completely ineffective. Cases of super-gonorrhea have been detected in parts of the West Midlands (in the center of the country), London and even southern England.
The epidemic is growing among MSM
If only 34 cases have been officially confirmed in the laboratory, according to information revealed on April 17 by Public Health England, an agency of the British Department of Health, it is very likely that these figures hide a greater spread. gonorrhea may be asymptomatic. Above all, the epidemic, which started in heterosexual couples, also seems to be developing in men who have sex with men (MSM). Which can be a problem: “They tend to spread infections more quickly, simply because they change partners more often,” explains Peter Greenhouse, a sexology consultant. interviewed by BBC News.
Gonorrhea is an infection that can cause infertility, and also puts you at an increased risk of HIV infection.
Like all sexually transmitted infections, prevention of gonorrhea relies on the consistent use of condoms (even for fellatio). No vaccine exists.
Cases of gonorrhea, but also of syphilis and chlamydia, have been on the rise in recent years around the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) recently estimated that every day nearly a million people are infected with an STI.
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