WHO: STD Superbug on the Rise

The World Health Organization warned this week that a major public-health crisis is emerging: a gonorrhea superbug that is apparently resistant to antibiotics. While gonorrhea is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases—106 million people worldwide become infected every year—this particular strain is particularly dangerous, since it does not respond to cephalosporin, the last antibiotic left that can treat gonorrhea. The WHO released a global action plan that promotes safe-sex practices. Untreated infections can cause infertility in both men and women, and up to half the babies born to parents with gonorrhea have severe eye infections. The WHO said it does not know the extent of the drug-resistant strain yet.