Super-gonorrhea on the march with few new treatments on the horizon

Following a review of health data from 77 countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a warning about the rise of antibiotic-resistant strains of gonorrhea.

Medical officer Teodora Wi said: "The bacteria that cause gonorrhea are particularly smart. Every time we use a new class of antibiotics to treat the infection, the bacteria evolve to resist them."

The WHO statement blames overprescription of antibiotics for the rise of resistant strains of the disease, which disproportionately affects women, and can cause pelvic inflammation, ectopic pregnancy and infertility, as well as an increased risk of HIV.