Treatment efficacy for rectal Neisseria gonorrhoeae: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Abstract

Background: Rectal gonorrhoea is a common sexually transmitted infection with increasing antimicrobial resistance requiring optimization of available treatments. Objectives: This systematic review aimed to assess the efficacy of current treatments, previously trialled treatments and new emerging treatments for rectal Neisseria gonorrhoeae (NG). Methods: Online bibliographic databases were search from 1 January 1946 to 14 August 2020. All randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with rectal NG data among participants aged 15 years or above and published in English were included. Random effects meta-analyses were used to estimate overall treatment efficacy, defined as microbiological cure. Sub-grou..