A study has revealed that taking the antibiotic doxycycline after sexual activity can significantly reduce the risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases (STIs) such as chlamydia or early syphilis.
The findings, presented at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Denver, demonstrate that a single dose of the widely used antibiotic doxycycline, when taken after intercourse, has halved the incidence of chlamydia and early syphilis among gay and bisexual men and transgender women in San Francisco, California.
Researchers provided a supply of the antibiotic to individuals with a history of STIs or multiple sexual partners, instructing them to consume two 100-milligram pills within 72 hours of unprotected intercourse. This approach, termed doxy-PEP (doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis), proved effective in reducing new cases of chlamydia and early syphilis in the city over the course of approximately one year.
Dr. Hyman Scott, medical director at the San Francisco Department of Public Health, remarked, “It’s not subtle, it is very fast and we’re seeing the beginning of it, not the end. This is what we want for STI prevention.”
However, it’s important to note that the evidence supporting the efficacy of doxycycline pertains primarily to gay and bisexual men and transgender women. Dr. Jonathan Mermin, director of the National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), emphasized the need for further research. He stated, “The majority of STIs in the United States occur in cisgender women. Studies of whether doxy-PEP works in cisgender women should be implemented as quickly as possible.”
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