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3 Common STDs Are Becoming Harder to Treat

The World Health Organization says 3 STDs, including gonorrhea, are growing more resistant to treatment

In the United States, drug-resistant gonorrhea is a public health problem of national concern. But untreatable gonorrhea isn't the only STD that has health officials worried, according to an NBC News report.

Earlier this week, the World Health Organization released new treatment guidelines for three common sexually transmitted diseases — chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis — in response to increasing antibiotic resistance.

Gonorrhea has developed the strongest resistance to drugs, according to the WHO, but the worries about untreatable syphilis and chlamydia come at a time when rates for the three STDs are rising rapidly in the U.S, especially among young people ages 20 to 24.

Gonorrhea is even starting to show decreased susceptibility to a "last line" treatment option. This makes this bacterium a multidrug-resistant organism, often called a "superbug."

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