Source: Fox News
Summary
A highly contagious gut infection, Shigellosis, caused by Shigella bacteria, is becoming harder to treat as antibiotic-resistant strains, including extensively drug-resistant (XDR) varieties, increase. A CDC report analyzed 17,000 Shigella samples from 2011 to 2023, finding that 8.5% of 2023 samples were XDR, compared to none from 2011 to 2015. XDR Shigella is resistant to all five antibiotics in the CDC’s definition. Most cases are in adult men, with many also living with HIV. The infection can spread through sexual contact, contaminated food or water, and poor hygiene. No FDA-approved oral antibiotic exists for XDR Shigella, and the CDC notes infections may be undercounted.
Our Reading
This guidance has been heard before.
Shigella is not new. Antibiotic resistance is not new. The numbers are rising, but the warnings are not.
Doctors say not to panic, but the bacteria are changing. Treatment options are disappearing.
Sexual transmission is not new, but the risk is growing. Immune systems matter, but so does access to care.
The infection is not surging, but the bacteria are. The same patterns repeat, just with different labels.
Author: Evan Null
