CHARACTERISTICS OF GONOCOCCI ISOLATED FROM MEN WITH URETHRITIS IN DUBAI

Neisseria gonorrhoeae were collected from men attending out-patient cl inics in Dubai. The susceptibility to a range of therapeutic antibioti cs and their auxotype and serotype was determined. The plasmid content of all penicillinase-producing strains was also analysed. Thirty-six strains of N. gonorrhoeae were isolated from specimens collected from 79 patients over a 24-day period. Of the 36 isolates, 9 (25 %) were pe nicillinase-producing N. gonorrhoeae (PPNG) and 15 (42 %) were chromos omally resistant N. gonorrhoeae (CMRNG). CMRNG exhibited higher levels of resistance to cefuroxime, chloramphenicol, tetracycline and erythr omycin than PPNG. All isolates were susceptible to ceftriaxone and spe ctinomycin. Three (8 %) isolates showed reduced susceptibility (MIG, g reater than or equal to 0.25 mg/1) to ciprofloxacin. Six isolates of P PNG carried the 4.4 MD and three the 3.2 MD penicillinase encoding pla smid. The total gonococcal population was phenotypically diverse, with 12 serovars, 6 auxotypes and 21 A/S classes. Gonorrhoea was found to be a major cause of urethritis in Dubai and the strains exhibited high levels of resistance to penicillin.