By Amelia Pooser
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have become an increasingly large issue in the United States, as rates of infection have skyrocketed in past years. According to a New York Times article by Apoorva Mandavilli “In 2021, there were 1.6 million cases of chlamydia, more than 700,000 cases of gonorrhea and nearly 177,000 cases of syphilis in the United States.” These numbers are staggering especially compared to previous years. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Gonorrhea cases have increased by 118% from 2009, and syphilis cases have increased 74% from 2017. These numbers are very concerning to medical professionals as gonorrhea, chlamydia, and syphilis can be easily treated with antibiotics, but it seems there is a lack of information or availability of such treatment for STIs.
So, it is exciting news that a new medical approach is breaking through in the field. The C.D.C. has announced that they plan to recommend the use of doxycycline after unprotected sex. Doxycycline is a widely used and common antibiotic that has been denoted as doxy-PEP. This could be a great solution to the rising cases of STIs but it can only be recommended to certain groups at this time due to its limited testing.
Only gay or bisexual men and transgender women are cleared to use the drug at this point. This is due to successful testing by the C.D.C. that reported that if doxy-PEP was taken within 72 hours of the unprotected sexual encounter the rate of infection decreases significantly. It was important to “target” this group of individuals first as they represent a large portion of the STI epidemic. For example, the C.D.C. reported that men having sex with other men accounted for half of the syphilis cases reported. However the guidelines for the drug use could expand in the future to include heterosexual men and cis-women but this would require more research and testing to be performed.
It is also important to note that as of now there are no significant concerns about these bacterial diseases (STIs) developing antibiotic resistance. Doxycycline has been in use for decades and only gonorrhea has shown some signs of mutation or evolution. Therefore medical professionals are in full support of the antibiotic being provided along with other sexual health programs to the public
This development is very important not only medically but socially as well. As a country we have a history of ignoring the importance of sexual health and sexually transmitted infections and/or diseases, with tragic consequences, and this drug is a step forward in the country addressing the growing problem. The next steps for the drug will include the official publication of the new C.D.C. guidelines for the drug after a 45 day public comment period. Additionally there seems to be acknowledgement from the administration that STIs do disproportionately affect marginalized communities and there will be a conscious effort to spread the news about the drug to these communities. So don’t let that pee sting any longer and look out for doxy-PEP in the near future.