The World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed that a “super gonorrhea” is spreading fast due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The agency says the disease is spreading due to actual antibiotic overuse for those infected with the novel coronavirus.
The agency also states the sexually transmitted infection (STI) may become even more resistant to the recommended treatments like azithromycin, which typically is used for chest and sinus infections. Azithromycin has seen an increase in usage during the pandemic.
“Such a situation can fuel the emergence of resistance in gonorrhea including gonorrhea superbug (super gonorrhea) or gonorrhea with high-level resistance to current antibiotics recommended to treat it,” a WHO spokesperson told British media outlet The Sun.
The new strain does not respond to the normal first-line treatments, making it even more dangerous and uncomfortable for those infected, according to the report.
Doctors and medical experts have long warned of the possibility that “superbugs” that are antibiotic-resistant could become more commonplace, and this is one example of such a thing happening.
The Agency also explained that the new strain is exploding is because most people aren’t going to the hospital unless they come down with COVID-19 symptoms. Instead, they’re self-medicating, a WHO spokesperson told The Sun, adding that the “super gonorrhea” is extremely resistant to antibiotics.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said cases of gonorrhea, which is caused by the bacteria Neisseria gonorrhoeae, have increased 63 percent since 2014.
The US agency has also warned that this could “facilitate the transmission of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).” Not only this, but it can also cause eye infections.
