Treatment of non-complicated urogenital, rectal and oropharyngeal gonorrhoea with intramuscular cefotaxime 1.0 g or cefuroxime 1.5 g

Abstract

In an open randomized study in a large Rotterdam male and female population (n = 1500), suffering from uncomplicated urogenital, rectal and oropharyngeal gonorrhoea treatment with cefotaxime 1.0 g proved to be more effective than with cefuroxime 1.5 g in all patients studied. However, statistically significant differences between the failure rates of the cefotaxime and the cefuroxime treatment were found only for all male and female patients, in urethral or urogenital and rectal infections in this group, for all male patients, and in urethral infections in men. Failure rates were low (1.7 and 5.6%, respectively for cefotaxime and cefuroxime). Oropharygeal gonorrhoea responded less well than urethral or urogenital and rectal gonorrhoea. Both drugs were very effective in the eradication of uncomplicated gonococcal infections caused by both non-beta-lactamase producing and beta-lactamase producing gonococci. High (greater than 30%) post-gonococcal urethritis rates were observed. Side-effects were minor.