The Antibiotic Overuse Because Of Covid-19 Could Be Causing A Super Gonorrhea Spread, Says Expert

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Antibiotics used during the covid-19 pandemic could be behind the spread of super gonorrhea.

Super gonorrhea has been a trending topic for some time now though it has been overshadowed by the covid-19 pandemic. According to a new post by Forbes.com, covid-19 has come with a shortage of a lot of things including medical support. Super gonorrhea is caused by antibiotic resistance.

According to the post, Instead, super gonorrhea results when the bacteria that causes gonorrhea, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, develops a high level of resistance to the antibiotics normally used to treat the infection: azithromycin and ceftriaxone. The World Health Organization (WHO) listed such strains of N. gonorrhoeae on its world’s most dangerous superbugs list.”

On matters why the super bug is spreading, the post highlighted a number of possibilities, “So why is super gonorrhea trending on Twitter when there are oh so many other things that can trend? Well, there are different possibilities But it looks like the trending stemmed from a WHO spokesperson telling The Sun that the overuse of azithromycin and the lack of services to treat sexually transmitted infections (STIs) during the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic may be fueling the rise of super gonorrhea. Not the Sun as in that fiery ball in the sky that you shouldn’t look at even during an eclipse but The Sun as in the U.K. publication.”

The use of antibiotics without prescription during the covid-19 pandemic has also contributed a great deal in the spread of the super bug. According to the post, “Indeed, use azithromycin more often can select for more resistant versions of N. gonorrhoeae. Remember earlier this year when some were touting the use azithromycin along with hydroxychloroquine to treat Covid-19? And some political leaders jumped on this bandwagon? This was even before well-constructed and executed clinical studies were done to assess the safety and efficacy of such medications for treating severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) infections. So this was an example of premature medication. Since then clinical studies have not found enough evidence to support such use.”

The covid pandemic has also led to the depletion of medical supplies and this has affected the treatment of other infections. The post further explained this, “One problem with the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic is that other pathogens haven’t necessarily taken a break. They haven’t spent most of their time on Zoom calls muting each other and using the video filters while saying, “hey look at me, herpes with a hat.” While humans social distancing may have limited the spread of some pathogens such as influenza, others may have had a good 2020. After all, the pandemic has not only prompted doctors to try different antibiotics to treat Covid-19 coronavirus, it has also reduced the availability of doctors to properly treat STIs. The pandemic has shut down many “non-essential” health services or dissuaded many patients from seeking proper medical care. Therefore, people may be running around with untreated infections or trying to self-treat with potentially inappropriate antibiotics.”

The treatment of the super bug has provided a great medical challenge because it is caused by the same strategies aimed at treating it. For more information about gonorrhea, STD dating and other sexually transmitted infections, visit the Meet Positives site.