Analysis of antibiotic resistance of 438 clinical isolates of Neisseria gonorrhoeae obtained from 2018 to 2022

Abstract

Objective To summarize the surveillance results of antibiotic resistance of Neisseria gonorrhoeae to 7 antibiotics (penicillin G, tetracycline, ciprofloxacin, spectinomycin, cefixime, ceftriaxone and Azithromycin) in Panyu District, Guangzhou, from 2018 to 2022. Methods Neisseria gonorrhoeae strains were isolated from urogenital secretions such as urethra or cervical vagina at the sexually transmitted disease outpatient clinic of Panyu District from 2018 to 2022. The agar dilution method was used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of the seven antibiotics. Penicillinase-producing N. gonorrhoeae (PPNG) was analyzed by the paper acidometric method. The sensitivity and prevalence of Neisseria gonorrhoeae strains to antibiotics were compared among those years. Results A total of 438 strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae were collected. Among them, the rates of PPNG and TRNG were 48.86% (214/438) and 38.13% (167/438), respectively. The overall resistance rates to tetracycline, ciprofloxacin, and azithromycin were 90.18%, 96.12%, and 13.47%, respectively. The resistance rate to penicillin was increased significantly from 50.60% in 2018 to 84.00% in 2022 (χ2=23.59, P<0.01). We found no strains resistant to spectinomycin, ceftriaxone, and cefixime. However, the intermediate sensitivity to ceftriaxone and cefixime was increased from 2.41% (2/83) and 3.61% (3/83) in 2018 to 13.00% (13/100) and 25.00% (25/100) respectively, in 2022 (χ2=6.76, P<0.01 and χ2=14.39, P<0.01). Conclusions All Neisseria gonorrhoeae strains collected from 2018 to 2022 are sensitive to erythromycin, ceftriaxone, and cefixime. However, there is a trend of yearly increase in the rates of low-sensitivity to ceftriaxone and cefixime, and PPNG and TRNG are also highly prevalent.

Keywords

• gonorrhea
• neisseria gonorrhoeae
• drug survellance
• microbial sensitivity tests
• drug resistance analysis