A post on a Gonorrhea epidemic
Let’s talk about sex baby – well sexually transmitted diseases to be more specific – and who better to begin with than little ole gonorrhea. Actually, she isn’t so little. As of October, the number of gonorrhea cases in the US hit a record high surpassing 580,000 reports marking the highest since 1991. Reported cases rose 5% from the previous year and 63% from 2014 indicating a massive prevalence of the infamous STD. With such outrageous numbers, I’m sure you’re curious on exactly how this epidemic arose.
The CDC suggests various reasons on why STD’s like gonorrhea are on the rise including drug use, poverty, stigma, and unstable housing, all of which can reduce access to STD prevention and care. The CDC also suggests that a substantial decrease in condom use, especially in vulnerable groups such as gay and bisexual men, have also led to the increase in cases. The CDC also makes sure to highlight budget cuts to STD programs which reduce screening and patient-follow up. It is also important to note however, that the US has done a significantly better job at STD screening, which could add a few cases to the incline, as a screening equals a reported case. However, despite being compared to previous under-reporting, there is still clearly an epidemic.
Accompanying the rise is cases is a decline in treatment options. The development of antibiotic resistant gonorrhea is not unfamiliar to microbiologists. Unfortunately, a single drug is most often used to treat gonorrhea, and as resistance increases, treatment options dwindle. The threat of antibiotic resistance is very real and gonorrhea is no stranger to this happening. The next step is to combat antibiotic resistance (in ways mentioned in the last blog post) and to work on developing a new drug to treat gonorrhea.
Kalei is a Scientist 