Publications by authors named "K Town"
Background: Since 2014, Neisseria gonorrhoeae azithromycin (AZM) susceptibility has declined in the United States, but high-level AZM resistance (HL-AZMR) has been infrequent and sporadic. We describe a cluster of 14 N. gonorrhoeae isolates with HL-AZMR identified in Indianapolis over 13 months.
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- The CDC launched the Strengthening the US Response to Resistant Gonorrhea (SURRG) initiative in 2016 to improve rapid detection and response strategies for antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea across multiple jurisdictions.
- Funded jurisdictions worked on better specimen collection for gonorrhea testing, rapid antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and enhanced data communication, collecting over 58,000 specimens between 2018 and 2019.
- The initiative successfully expanded testing and partner services, finding only a small percentage of cases with significant antibiotic resistance, and hopes to inform future public health strategies against gonococcal resistance.
Background: Sexual networks are difficult to construct because of incomplete sexual partner data. The proximity of people within a network may be inferred from genetically similar infections. We explored genomic data combined with partner services investigation (PSI) data to extend our understanding of sexual networks affected by Neisseria gonorrhoeae (NG).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) Neisseria gonorrhoeae is an urgent threat to public health, as strains resistant to at least one of the two last-line antibiotics used in empiric therapy of gonorrhoea, ceftriaxone and azithromycin, have spread internationally. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) data can be used to identify new AMR clones and transmission networks and inform the development of point-of-care tests for antimicrobial susceptibility, novel antimicrobials and vaccines. Community-driven tools that provide an easy access to and analysis of genomic and epidemiological data is the way forward for public health surveillance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNational guidelines recommend annual sexually transmitted infection testing for sexually active people living with human immunodeficiency virus, including transgender women. Using data from the US Medical Monitoring Project during 2015-2019, in the previous 12 months, 63.3% of sexually active transgender women who were human immunodeficiency virus positive were tested for syphilis, 56.
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