Zoliflodacin was seen to cure uncomplicated gonorrhea infection as effectively as the current go-to treatment<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Physician\u2019s Briefing Staff HealthDay Reporter<\/b><\/p>\n
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FRIDAY, Nov. 3, 2023 (HealthDay News) — The first new antibiotic for gonorrhea — the second most common sexually transmitted disease — has shown promise in a clinical trial.<\/p>\n
This new antibiotic, called zoliflodacin, was seen in the trial to cure uncomplicated gonorrhea infection as effectively as the current go-to treatment — ceftriaxone along with one dose of azithromycin pills.<\/p>\n
The drug was developed by U.S.-based Innoviva Specialty Therapeutics and Swiss nonprofit Global Antibiotic Research & Development Partnership.<\/p>\n
“The outcome of this study is a potential game changer for sexual health,” Edward Hook III, M.D., protocol chair for the study and emeritus professor of medicine at the University of Alabama in Birmingham, said in a news release<\/a> from the drug’s developers. “In addition to the potential benefits for patients with infections with resistant strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae<\/em>, the potential lack of cross-resistance with other antibiotics and the oral route of administration will simplify gonorrhea therapy for clinicians worldwide.”<\/p>\n Zoliflodacin treats gonorrhea in a new way. However, it is less effective at treating gonorrhea infection of the throat than it is in the genital or rectal areas, NBC News<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n Innoviva said it expects to seek U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval “as quickly as practicably possible.”<\/p>\n