A three-day doxycycline regimen for treatment of gonorrhea

Patients with uncomplicated gonorrhea were given three 300-mg capsules of doxycycline, one of which was to be taken after the heaviest meal of the day, on each of three consecutive days. A total of 560 men and women were treated by this method. Of the 355 patients who returned for tests of cure within seven to ten days, all but seven (2%) responded favorably to the treatment. The effectiveness of the regimen was similar to that of other accepted treatments. Adverse effects were inconsequential or absent, providing that the medication was taken after meals. This treatment option simplifies considerably the directions to be followed by the patient and minimizes the risk of noncompliance in the treatment of gonorrhea with tetracyclines.