A super-resistant strain of gonorrhea has been reported in the United Kingdom following warnings from global public health officials that the common sexually transmitted disease is becoming more difficult to treat.

Health officials in England said it is the first time a case of gonorrhea could not be treated successfully with antibiotics commonly used to cure it.

Earlier this year, a man, who was not named, sought treatment there for symptoms he developed about a month after he had sexual contact with a woman in Southeast Asia, according to a case report from Public Health England. The bacterial infection was treated with two antibiotics, azithromycin and ceftriaxone, but subsequent tests still came back positive for the disease, the officials said.

Gonorrhea, which is caused by the bacterium, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases around the world.

washington post