Just when you thought catching cooties isn’t all that scary anymore, they’re back and one strain is quite difficult to get rid of! There’s a newly-observed, drug-resistant gonorrhea strain that doesn’t respond to common antibiotics and it can become a problem.
How This Drug-Resistant Gonorrhea Strain Could Become a Global Concern:
We can’t help it — it’s natural to crave sex. However, having sex these days is riskier than ever. Because more people can catch the drug-resistant strain of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Experts from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control say that this strain of STD is difficult to treat with antibiotics like Tetracycline, Ciprofloxacin, Cefixime, Ceftriaxone, Cefotaxime, and Azithromycin. Unfortunately, there isn’t a vaccine against this type of Sexually-Transmitted Disease either.
An antibiotic-resistant STD can become a huge problem in the future because Neisseria gonorrhoeae might eventually become almost impossible to treat with the resources that are available to us. According to the researchers, in a news release, “Enhanced antimicrobial resistance surveillance (ideally including test of cure and whole-genome sequencing), nationally and internationally, particularly in Asia where many ceftriaxone-resistant strains appear to have emerged, is of highest importance. Ultimately, novel antimicrobials for effective treatment of gonorrhea and/or a sufficiently effective gonococcal vaccine will be crucial.”
The Solution to STD: Prevention!
Gonorrhea may seem somewhat like the adult version of cooties, but the problems that a person can get range from uncomfortable sensations to permanent damage to the body.
Based on an article by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, some of the symptoms of gonorrhea are:
Discomfort when urinating
White, yellow, or green urine
Increased (and sometimes, foul-smelling) discharge
Vaginal bleeding in women — in between menstrual cycles
Painful bowel movements (if it’s a rectal infection)
*If gonorrhea is left untreated, the person infected by the STD can end up becoming infertile.
However, just because gonorrhea is “sexually transmitted,” that doesn’t mean a person should abstain from sex. There are still ways to enjoy having sex without the fear — or, at least, minimize the worry — of catching the disease. You and your sexual partner should be transparent with each other if one of you has the disease.
Moreover, physicians encourage people — especially the ones with multiple partners (or those who engage in casual sex) — to get tested regularly. But the simplest solution to STD prevention is by using protection. Wearing a condom is the cheapest and one of the most effective ways to prevent STDs — doing this is more imperative than ever as the new drug-resistant gonorrhea strain might be untreatable.
Summary
Sex is fun but it always comes with plenty of risks — especially these days as a drug-resistant gonorrhea strain has been discovered by scientists. This should be a concern to sexually active people because experts are yet to figure out how to treat this type of STD; they haven’t found an antibiotic or vaccine to treat the antibiotic-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Until they do, take caution by informing your partner (and have them inform you also) if you have STD, get tested regularly, and use protection — as often as you can.
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Discovered on: 2023-04-05 15:50:55
Source: Feeling Sexy? Beware of New Drug-Resistant Gonorrhea Strain
