Medicosnext
Following its independent data monitoring committee’s recommendation to stop studies early because the drug had already proven to be effective, GSK will soon be submitting data on its new antibiotic, gepotidacin, to the US Food and Drug Administration for approval in urinary tract infections. Studies have found it to work at least as well as nitrofurantoin, a front-line medication used currently to treat UTIs. This is the first new type of antibiotic developed in more than 20 years to treat UTIs. Gepotidacin blocks enzymes that bacteria need to unzip their DNA so they can
multiply. The new drug was developed in partnership with the US government’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority as one of 19 projects currently underway to fight antimicrobial resistance. According to the World Health Organization, there is a looming threat of increasing antibiotic resistance, which kills over one million every year, and not enough new antibiotics to combat the threat. UTI symptoms include frequent and painful urination, bloody urine, low stomach cramps and the need to urinate often. While both men and women of
any age are susceptible to UTIs, they are more common in women and girls, because they have shorter urethras that are closer to the rectum, which makes it easier for bacteria to enter and infect the urinary tract. One of the most
common infections, UTIs afflict one in eight women each year and one in five women over 65 years. About 30% to 44% of UTIs are recurrent, and most are caused by E. coli, which are becoming more antibiotic-resistant.
Ref: CNN, November 3, 2022, https://cnn.it/3WGScoj
