Neisseria gonorrhoeae Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance: Consolidated Guidance

Abstract

Prevention, early diagnosis, and effective treatment are essential for the control and elimination of Neisseria gonorrhoeae as a public health problem. Currently, in Latin America and the Caribbean, treatment for gonorrhea infection is largely empiric and based on clinical diagnosis. In the Americas, the high burden of new N. gonorrhoeae infections (estimated at 11 million new cases a year), the complexity of the disease epidemiology, and in many countries the limited resources, make it difficult to fully understand the burden of disease and the burden of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in N. gonorrhoeae. PAHO has developed this document to facilitate the navigation of available guidance and recommendations for N. gonorrhoeae AMR surveillance by public health and health care professionals, at the national and subnational levels, involved in designing, implementing, and/or strengthening AMR surveillance of N. gonorrhoeae and overall surveillance of sexually transmitted infections. This document aims to consolidate guidance on AMR surveillance for N. gonorrhoeae from documents published by WHO and PAHO, and strives to assemble relevant information in a summarized manner to help countries in strengthening and/or developing AMR surveillance systems for N. gonorrhoeae.