Antimicrobial Resistance and Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Clinical Features N. gonorrhoeae causes infection of mucosal membranes including the cervix, rectum, and throat. If untreated, gonorrhea remains a major cause of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), tubal infertility, ectopic pregnancy, and chronic pelvic pain. Epidemiologic studies provide strong evidence that gonococcal infections facilitate HIV transmission. Incidence Gonorrhea, caused by Neisseria gonorrhoeae, is second only to chlamydial infections in the number of cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); 361,705 cases were reported to CDC in 2001 (www.cdc.gov/std/stats/). It is estimated that only one-half of the actual number of infections are reported. The number of reported cases of gonorrhea increased steadily from 1964 to 1975. During 1975-1997, the U.S. gonorrhea rate declined by 73.9%; it increased by 7.9% between 1997 and 1998 and has remained stable with a rate in 2001 of 128.5 cases per 100,000.