Health
Drug-resistant Shigella strains rise in US, CDC data show
Fox News reports that extensively drug-resistant Shigella reached 8.5% of 2023 samples with resistance data, and no FDA-approved oral antibiotic exists for those strains.
The short version
- Fox News reports that a CDC report found extensively drug-resistant Shigella, a contagious gut infection that can spread during sex, is becoming more common, rising to 8.5% of 2023 samples with resistance data from none in 2011 to 2015.[Fox News]
- Dr. Tyler Evans says the findings point to a growing resistance problem rather than a surge in overall infections, and no FDA-approved oral antibiotic exists for these strains.[Fox News]
- Sexual exposure data were not routinely collected, and the CDC says infections may be undercounted, so the full scale remains uncertain.[Fox News]
Key facts
- Extensively drug-resistant Shigella made up 8.5% of 2023 samples with resistance data, up from none in 2011 to 2015.[Fox News]
- Shigella can spread through contaminated food or water, unwashed hands, or sexual activity.[Fox News]
- Sexual transmission of Shigella has been documented since the 1970s.[Fox News]
- Among XDR patients, 86% were men with a median age of 41, and nearly half of those with a known HIV status were living with HIV.[Fox News]
- According to the CDC report, 37.6% of patients with hospitalization data were hospitalized for the antibiotic-resistant infection.[Fox News]
- The CDC reported no deaths among the XDR cases it analyzed.[Fox News]
- No FDA-approved oral antibiotic is available for XDR Shigella.[Fox News]
What remains uncertain
Sources
Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.