There is no doubt that the world needs new antibiotics, especially truly innovative ones with new modes of actions to attack drug-resistant bacteria and counter … Causes of antibiotic shortages and the solutions to address them – by Enrico Baraldi
The unchecked growth of drug-resistant infections is a silent pandemic with long-term implications for global health security. As the world reels from the impact of COVID-19, it would be a tragedy not to apply the lessons we are learning to the fight against drug resistance.
Zoliflodacin is an oral antibiotic with a novel mode of action distinct from quinolones. The majority of uncomplicated urogenital and rectal gonococcal infections were successfully treated with oral zoliflodacin in a phase 2 study conducted in the U.S. Zoliflodacin offers many of the WHO preferred characteristics for gonorrhoea therapy, including single dose therapy, low rate of side effects, and both urogenital and extragenital site efficacy.
In this Antimicrobial Viewpoint article, I explore the two types of clinical trials: Superiority and non-inferiority (NI) as well as the lethal danger of Infections and how antibiotics are best developed before we need them. I also explain how non-inferiority trials are for the public good and allow us to avoid COVID-19-like situations and explain why superiority efficacy is (hopefully) unattainable, but superior utility is possible.
Whether it concerns an old or new antibiotic, access to these drugs represents a major challenge globally and this is not a recent problem. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the shortages of existing antibiotics and the lack of new and innovative treatments. It has led to the recognition that we not only need efficient treatments to be available for patients when and where needed but also that we need to have innovative treatments ready prior to reaching an emergency situation.