The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) no longer recommends antibiotics known as fluoroquinolones (ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, and levofloxacin) as a treatment for gonorrhea in the United States.
This limits the options available to treat gonorrhea, one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases in the United States.
The recommendation was prompted by new data released today in CDC?s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) showing that fluoroquinolone-resistant gonorrhea is now widespread in the United States among heterosexuals and men who have sex with men (MSM). The data showed the proportion of drug-resistant cases among heterosexuals rising above the recognized threshold of 5 percent for changing treatment recommendations. CDC had recommended fluoroquinolones no longer be used to treat gonorrhea in MSM when this threshold was crossed in earlier years.
The new data, from CDC?s Gonococcal Isolate Surveillance Project (GISP) in 26 U.S. cities, showed that among heterosexual men, the proportion of gonorrhea cases that were fluoroquinolone-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae (QRNG) reached 6.7 percent in the first half of 2006, an 11-fold increase from 0.6 percent in 2001.
Recommended options for treating gonorrhea are now limited to a single class of antibiotics known as cephalosporins. Public health officials believe the lack of treatment options underscores the need for accelerated research into new drugs, as well as increased efforts to monitor for emerging drug resistance, especially to cephalosporins.
?There is also an urgent need for new, effective medicines to treat gonorrhea. We are running out of options to treat this serious disease,? said Dr. Kevin Fenton, Director of CDC?s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention. ?Increased vigilance in monitoring for resistance to all available drugs is essential.?
While significant resistance to cephalosporins has not been observed to date, CDC is working with state and local health departments to monitor emerging cephalosporin resistance. CDC is urging health departments to maintain or develop capacity to perform cultures for Neisseria gonorrhoeae and to assess any gonorrhea treatment failures for possible resistance. In addition, CDC is working with the World Health Organization to strengthen international efforts to monitor for the emergence of cephalosporin resistance and with government and industry partners to identify and evaluate promising new drug regimens. These additional measures are critical for the control of gonorrhea.