Decreasing susceptibility to front-line antibiotics seen in Dutch gonorrhea
An analysis of Neisseria gonorrhea isolates from a sexually transmitted infection (STI) clinic in Amsterdam shows a rise in decreased susceptibility to azithromycin and ceftriaxone, researchers report today in Eurosurveillance.
Researchers found that, of the 3,151isolates obtained from the STI Outpatient Clinic from January 2012 through September 2015, only 38 (1.2%) were resistant to azithromycin, while none were resistant to ceftriaxone. But analysis of minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) showed that the percentage of isolates with intermediate MICs (> 0.25 and ≤ 0.5 mg/L) for azithromycin increased from 3.7% in 2012 to 8.6% in 2015, an indication of decreased susceptibility. In addition, the proportion of isolates showing decreased susceptibility to ceftriaxone rose from 3.6% in 2012 to 8.4% in 2015.
Decreasing susceptibility to both azithromycin and ceftriaxone was noted particularly among men who have sex with men, with isolates from more recent infections (those diagnosed in 2014) were also more likely to show decreased susceptibility. Among heterosexuals, decreased susceptibility to azithromycin and ceftriaxone was more likely to be observed in individuals who had more than 10 sexual partners, while being diagnosed in 2014 or 2015 was only significantly associated with decreased susceptibility to ceftriaxone.
International guidelines currently recommend dual therapy with ceftriaxone and azithromycin as the primary treatment for gonorrhea. But the bacterium's history of developing resistance to antibiotics, along with recent reports of high-level azithromycin-resistant gonorrhea in the United Kingdom and rising resistance to ceftriaxone in other countries, has raised the concern that the STI could become much more difficult to treat.
While the study shows that resistance to azithromycin and ceftriaxone is lower in Amsterdam than in other European countries, the authors caution that the rise in decreased susceptibility, coupled with higher resistance in other countries and increasing globalization, highlights the need for continued surveillance and development of new treatment strategies.
Jan 5 Eurosurveill research article
Petition calls for fast-food companies to ban antibiotics in meat, poultry
A petition signed by more than 125,000 people was delivered today to the CEOs of 16 fast-food companies, calling on them to stop selling meat and poultry raised on medically important antibiotics.
The fast-food companies targeted in the petition effort all received an "F" in the most recent Chain Reaction report from the Center for Food Safety, Consumers Union, Friends of the Earth, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Food Animals Concerns Trust. The report grades America's 25 largest fast-food and fast-casual chains on their meat and poultry antibiotics policies. Experts believe the use of medically important antibiotics in food-producing animals is contributing to the emergence of antibiotic resistance.
The petition is the latest in a series of campaigns to put public pressure on restaurant chains to commit to eliminating the use of medically important antibiotic in the meat and poultry they sell. The Center for Food Safety, Consumers Union, and US Public Interest Group have been gathering signatures since the Chain Reaction report was released in September.
"Antibiotics should only be used to treat disease, not wasted on healthy animals or to compensate for filthy conditions on factory farms," Jean Halloran, director of food policy initiatives at Consumers Union, said in a press release. "It's time for restaurants to help protect public health by demanding that their suppliers end the irresponsible use of these important medications."
One of the targeted companies is Burger King, whose parent company—Restaurant Brands International—announced last week that it would stop selling chicken raised on antibiotics in 2017. But that move was deemed insufficient because the company agreed only to eliminate those antibiotics considered "the most critical" in human medicine.
Other companies on the list include Wendy's, KFC, Arby's, and Taco Bell.
Jan 5 Consumers Union press release