Antibiotic resistance of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in Jamaica compared with the United States

ABSTRACT

The antibiotic sensitivity of 113 strains of N. gonorrhoeae collected in Kingston and Montego Bay in 1978 was compared to that of 26 strains collected in Kingston in 1971. In 1971, 38 percent of the gonococcal isolates in Jamaica grew in the presence of >0.25 æg/ml of penicillin (0.4 units) compared to only 8.9 percent in 1978. A similar decrease in the level of tetracycline resistance (MIC>1.0 æg/ml) was also seen from 1971, when 31 percent of gonococcal isolates were resistant, to 1977 when only 13.4 percent were resistant. The percentage of antibiotic resistance of strains of N. gonorrhoeae in Jamaica was higher than were contemporary isolates from the United States in both 1971 and 1978. The level of penicillin and tetracycline resistance of the 1978 strains were less than those of the 1971 strains, but were higher as a group than contemporary gonococci isolated in the United States (AU)