‘Highly resistant’ gonorrhea on the rise in Canada, other countries: World Health Organization – CTV
July 25, 2023
Several countries, including Canada, are seeing a spike in cases of gonorrhea that are “highly resistant” to existing treatments, according to the World Health Organization’s most recent guidance regarding sexually transmitted infections.
The World Health Organization (WHO) shared the warning in a news release Monday regarding their latest guidelines for testing for and diagnosing sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
According to the organization, the COVID-19 pandemic caused disruptions to prevention, testing and treatment services for STIs in many countries, leaving them battling a new resurgence of these infections now – and the spectre of antimicrobial resistance is making these infections harder to kick than ever.
“Of concern, the spread of a Neisseria gonorrhea clone that is highly resistant to ceftriaxone is increasingly being reported in countries in Asia such as China, Japan, Singapore and Vietnam as well as in Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, France, Ireland and the United Kingdom,” the release stated.
