New Global Health Threat: “Super Gonorrhea” Epidemic Emerges in China
New Global Health Threat: “Super Gonorrhea” Epidemic Emerges in China
Report: Hani Kamal El-Din
Millions around the globe are now infected with a new strain of gonorrhea deemed “super gonorrhea.” With no known cure, experts fear it could spark a new pandemic.
Doctors alarmed by super gonorrhea’s resistance to antibiotics.
Replacing the conventional form of gonorrhea, which, while troublesome, was treatable, is the emergence of “super gonorrhea.” This infection, caused by a bacteria that currently has no effective treatment, has developed resistance to all known antibiotics. In recent years, numerous cases of super gonorrhea have been reported in China, with approximately 60 million new infections annually [as reported by the British daily mail.co.uk]. Of particular concern to specialists is the fact that antibiotic-resistant strains of the virus could easily spread globally, potentially leading to a new pandemic claiming millions of lives annually. “Lenta.ru,” alongside medical experts, aims to delve into the dangers of this venereal disease and why conventional treatment methods are failing.
As early as 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned that several strains of bacteria, including the gonorrhea-causing bacterium gonococcus, were becoming increasingly resistant to antibiotic treatment. Essentially, they were becoming too resilient. Specialists at the time speculated that gonorrhea would soon become untreatable by any existing medications. Four years later, that moment appears to have arrived.
A study conducted in 2022 by representatives of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revealed that over 97 percent of bacteria samples taken from gonorrhea patients in 13 Chinese provinces showed resistance to modern antibiotics. In eight percent of cases, even treatment with the drug ceftriaxone, currently used to treat this condition, proved ineffective.
China has seen a higher prevalence of super gonorrhea compared to Europe and the USA.
While scientists have identified only one antibiotic capable of treating the identified strain of super gonorrhea, some strains are already proving resistant to this medication. Aside from China, cases of infection with the disease have been documented in the UK and the US.
Experts fear that China, the origin of the coronavirus pandemic, may be the starting point for the global spread of super gonorrhea.
The new infection has already been dubbed one of the most serious threats.
Antibiotic-resistant strains of gonorrhea are not a new phenomenon. The first such case was documented in Japan as far back as 2011. Five years later, antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea was discovered in the UK. Similar cases have occurred in Southeast Asia. According to experts, the situation may be even more dire in poorer countries.
According to obstetrician-gynecologist at AO “Medicine” Sabina Khanmirzoyeva, gonorrhea’s resistance to antibiotics can be considered one of the most serious threats to healthcare. According to the doctor, this problem could have arisen due to many factors, including unrestricted access to antimicrobial agents, improper selection and overuse of antibiotics, as well as low-quality medications.
Genetic changes within the human body also contribute to the increased drug resistance of gonorrhea. When tissues outside the genital organs, such as the throat or colon, are affected, gonococci interact and exchange genetic material with other microorganisms present in those areas, which also plays a role in their mutation.
Reports from the World Health Organization indicate that the effectiveness of gonorrhea treatment with antibiotics declines more rapidly in countries where antibacterial drugs can be purchased without a prescription. Another problem cited by experts is the use of antibiotics without a doctor’s prescription, incomplete treatment courses, or non-adherence to a doctor’s recommendations.
Khanmirzoyeva explained that the resistance of new strains of gonorrhea to antibiotics does not necessarily mean that the disease will become untreatable. However, the process itself will become more complex and will result in extremely serious financial expenses for both patients and healthcare. “Resistance to antimicrobial agents prolongs the course of infection in more people and increases the number of patients with long-term negative consequences of gonorrhea,” the doctor clarified.
Gonorrhea is especially dangerous for pregnant women. In the first trimester, an untreated infection can cause miscarriage, fetal growth failure, or premature birth. If the pregnancy was maintained, the baby may contract an infection while passing through the birth canal. In newborns, gonococcus affects the brain, blood vessels and
organs of vision up to complete blindness. The severity of the consequences largely depends on the timing of infection of the mother with gonorrhea. It is especially dangerous if the child contracts the infection in the early stages.
As for men, if gonorrhea is not treated or treated with insufficiently effective methods, orchiepididymitis almost always develops – inflammation of the scrotal organs, which is accompanied by sharp pain in the perineum. There may also be difficulties with urination, and sperm may be produced less well and fertilize the egg less well. In addition, the lack of proper treatment can lead to prostatitis.
In both women and men, gonorrhea can spread to the bladder, ureters and kidneys, pharynx and rectum, lymph nodes and other internal organs. In advanced cases, a characteristic hemorrhagic rash, gonococcal arthritis of the joints may appear, and gonococcal sepsis may begin.
Gonorrhea also increases the likelihood of contracting HIV infection by 3-5 times, since the immunity of people who have it works worse. With rectal gonorrhea, this risk increases tenfold
Gonorrhea is considered a highly contagious infection. In 99 percent of cases it is transmitted sexually. Moreover, contrary to popular belief, you can get sick even after oral sex.
Gonorrhea occurs with equal frequency in both men and women. You can get sick at any age, but more often infection occurs during puberty, which is associated with the transmission of gonococci
In women, after sexual intercourse with an infected man, the risk of infection is from 50 to 80 percent, in men it is less – 30-40 percent. According to infectious disease doctor Evgeniy Bataev, this is due to the peculiarities of the anatomical structure of the genitourinary system in men: during urination, bacteria can be washed away.
It is almost impossible to become infected with gonorrhea through other means, such as visiting a public toilet, since the bacteria that causes it die quickly outside the human body. Also, the disease is not transmitted through household items, dishes and handrails in public transport.
The household route of infection with gonorrhea is minimal. To completely eliminate it, simply follow the rules of personal hygiene – take a shower regularly, wash your hands after visiting public and home toilets, do not touch your eyes and other mucous membranes of the body with dirty hands, and do not use other people’s personal hygiene items.
The incubation period of gonorrhea can last from two to fourteen days, on average about a week, Bataev added. With good immunity, the first signs of the disease in men and women appear 4-8 weeks after infection.
According to the doctor, the following stages of the disease are distinguished:
fresh gonorrhea. It can occur in acute, low-symptomatic or asymptomatic forms;
chronic gonorrhea. The disease enters this state in the absence of treatment or the use of ineffective drugs within two months after infection;
complicated gonorrhea.
At the same time, the manifestations of gonorrhea in representatives of different sexes differ, Bataev warned. In women, this is usually purulent vaginal discharge, itching and burning in the groin, swelling of the labia, and sometimes bleeding similar to menstruation. In men, the development of the disease is accompanied by burning and itching in the groin, painful urination and purulent discharge from the penis.
“If the symptoms of gonorrhea appeared in the first couple of months after casual unprotected sex, gonorrhea is considered fresh, it is easier to cure it. If the disease did not manifest itself for several months, and then the symptoms appeared unexpectedly, most likely, the recovery period will take a long time,” says the infectious disease specialist .
With a timely visit to the doctor, ordinary gonorrhea can be successfully treated with a course of antibiotics; for complete recovery, as a rule, a two-week course of medication is sufficient. For this reason, people who often change sexual partners should definitely use barrier methods of contraception, and if they suspect gonorrhea, immediately contact a specialist.
Of course, traditional methods of therapy do not cope well with supergonorrhea, especially if, instead of going to a specialist, you self-medicate. Without the help of a doctor and proper diagnosis, it is impossible to understand whether medications are helping and whether complications have begun.
The outbreak of supergonorrhea in China clearly indicates the need to develop completely new drugs that would be used to combat bacterial infections. Today, about 700 thousand people die annually around the world from various antibiotic-resistant pathogens.
However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s report predicts that unless immediate action is taken to combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria, the number of deaths caused by such bacteria could rise to 10 million per year by 2050.
