Hollywood, Ca. Resistant gonorrhea antibiotic bacteria represent the biggest current threat. There is now only one antibiotic left which is toxic to gonorrhea (“GC”) bacteria.
New cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis rose sharply for the fourth consecutive year in 2017, to a record high of nearly 2.3 million, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The United States “continues to have the highest STD rates in the industrialized world,” said David Harvey, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors.
Bloomberg News (8/28, Edney) reports there was “a record number of cases of sexually transmitted diseases in 2017, marking the fourth straight year of sharp increases in gonorrhea, syphilis and chlamydia, according to preliminary data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.” The CDC also warned that the growing prevalence of antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea is a contributing factor to the increase.
NBC News (8/28, Carroll) reports on its website that according to the CDC, there were “nearly 2.3 million cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis were diagnosed in the U.S. in 2017, surpassing the record set in 2016 by more than 200,000.” The article adds that “less frequent condom use” may be the greatest contributing factor.
The New York Times (8/28, Zraick) reports that there is no “single reason for the increase in sexually transmitted diseases.” Public health officials point to “deteriorating public health services, like S.T.D. testing clinics,” in addition to the opioid epidemic, “as users engage in unsafe practices.”
Blogfinger Medical Opinion. Paul Goldfinger, MD, FACC
One important factor in this issue is that condoms are being used less often. That is partially because of the advent of HIV prevention drugs.
Another problem is that the infrastructure for preventing STD’s is declining across the country. These three articles lay out all the facts. Note that most of these infections are in men, but the numbers are on the rise in women as well. Dating services have also been blamed, but there is no data on this.
Gonorrhea used to be the scourge of soldiers and sailors. They called it “the clap,” but one shot of penicillin would cure it but not so now. There now is an urgent need to develop new antibiotics for that STD.
From the NYT: “Many cases go undiagnosed, and the diseases can cause serious problems down the line, including infertility and increased H.I.V. risk.
“Most people with these S.T.D.s do not know they are infected,” said Dr. Gail Bolan, director of the C.D.C.’s division of sexually transmitted disease prevention. “They don’t realize that these diseases are spreading silently through the country.”
Syphilis could kill people, but after penicillin was developed in the 1940’s, doctors became unfamiliar with the condition. I saw some cases in the 1960’s. Primary syphilis caused a lesion on the genitalia or the lips, but secondary and tertiary forms could cause sterility, abortion, blindness, rash, brain damage and mother to child transmission. And the advanced form may be difficult to diagnose.
All of these conditions can be present without any symptoms, so prevention methods and testing can help with diagnosis. There are tests available to make the diagnosis of STD’s using blood, urine and some other methods.
If you have young people in your family who may be sexually active, have a talk about this or give them our link.