Antibiotics for gonorrhea

Examples

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Brand Name	Generic Name
Suprax	cefixime

Brand Name	Generic Name
Rocephin	ceftriaxone

How It Works

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Antibiotics kill the gonorrhea bacteria.

Why It Is Used

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These antibiotics are used to treat:

• A person who has a positive gonorrhea test.
• Sex partners within the past 60 days of a person diagnosed with gonorrhea, whether or not they have symptoms or used condoms.
• A newborn whose mother has gonorrhea at the time of delivery.

How Well It Works

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Antibiotic treatment, when taken exactly as directed, normally cures gonorrhea infections. If antibiotics are not taken properly, the infection will not be cured.

Certain strains of the gonorrhea bacteria have become resistant to some antibiotics, including quinolones, penicillin, tetracycline, and sulfa drugs. When bacteria become resistant to an antibiotic, they no longer can be killed by that medicine.

Side Effects

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The most common side effects of medicines used to treat gonorrhea are nausea and vomiting.

If you have side effects and cannot control them, contact your health professional. Another antibiotic may be prescribed that causes fewer side effects.

See Drug Reference for a full list of side effects. (Drug Reference is not available in all systems.)

What To Think About

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It isn't unusual for a person to have a chlamydia infection along with gonorrhea infection. In this case, an antibiotic that kills chlamydia is used along with one that kills gonorrhea.

To be effective, antibiotics need to be taken exactly as directed. If doses are missed or treatment is not completed, the gonorrhea infection may not be cured.

Call your health professional if symptoms continue or new symptoms develop 3 to 4 weeks after treatment.

Do not engage in any sexual activity:

• While you are being treated for a sexually transmitted disease (STD). If you are prescribed a single-dose antibiotic, do not have sex for 7 days after treatment so the medicine will have time to work.
• Until your sex partner has been tested and treated (if infected). This is critical, whether your partner has symptoms or not.

For disseminated gonococcal infection (DGI), antibiotic treatment is usually given intravenously (IV) or as a shot (injection). Hospital care is sometimes needed.

Complete the new medication information form (PDF) (What is a PDF document?) to help you understand this medication.

Credits

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Author	Kathe Gallagher, MSW
Editor	Kathleen M. Ariss, MS
Associate Editor	Pat Truman, MATC
Primary Medical Reviewer	Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine
Primary Medical Reviewer	Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine
Specialist Medical Reviewer	Deborah A. Penava, BA, MD, FRCSC, MPH - Obstetrics and Gynecology
Last Updated	May 9, 2007