Two newly approved antibiotics could mark a major breakthrough in tackling drug-resistant gonorrhoea, health experts say, as global cases of the sexually transmitted infection continue to surge.
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved zoliflodacin and gepotidacin, the first new treatments for gonorrhoea in decades. Their arrival comes as more than 82 million cases are recorded worldwide each year and resistance to existing antibiotics continues to rise.
Zoliflodacin, sold under the name Nuzolvence, cured more than 90% of genital infections in clinical trials and can be taken as a single oral dose. Gepotidacin, developed by GSK, has also been shown to work against strains resistant to current first-line drugs.
The World Health Organization has designated gonorrhoea a “priority pathogen”, warning that resistance to standard treatments has increased sharply in recent years. Researchers say the new antibiotics could help slow the spread of hard-to-treat infections and strengthen global efforts to control the disease.
