Chancroid and granuloma inguinale

Abstract

Haemophilus ducreyi is a fastidious pathogen that can be routinely cultured with the appropriate media and incubation environment. Prostituted women appear to be the usual reservoir. In Africa, chancroid is emerging as the major risk factor for acquisition of HIV-1 following heterosexual intercourse. Despite the emergence of resistance to a number of antimicrobial agents, H. ducreyi remains susceptible to ceftriaxone, erythromycin, and ciprofloxacin. Control and eradication of outbreaks of chancroid have been successful on several occasions in Western societies; strategies to control epidemic genital ulcer disease are required in developing countries. Granuloma inguinale is caused by a small, gram-negative rod, which has never been well-characterized. The presence of Donovan bodies is a specific and sensitive diagnostic characteristic. Very little is known about the epidemiology of the disease. Specific treatment programs using trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole or erythromycin seem to be quite effective. Control strategies have not been adequately investigated.