{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,7]],"date-time":"2026-01-07T14:01:30Z","timestamp":1767794490728,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":21,"publisher":"BMJ","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,30]],"date-time":"2025-07-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1753833600000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":29,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["bmj.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["bmjph"],"accepted":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,18]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2025,7]]},"abstract":"\n Introduction<\/jats:title>\n Increases in bacterial sexually transmitted infections (bac-STIs), such as gonorrhoea, chlamydia and syphilis, have affected gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (gbMSM). A new strategy to prevent bac-STIs involves giving doxycycline as postexposure prophylaxis (doxy-PEP), and research shows that this intervention can prevent chlamydia and syphilis by 70% and gonorrhoea by 33%\u201350%. Consequently, the US CDC released guidelines in 2024 recommending doxy-PEP for gbMSM with \u22651 bacterial STI diagnosis in the previous 12 months.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Methods<\/jats:title>\n We reviewed public health STI surveillance data between 1 January 2021 and 31 December 2024 for gbMSM in Ottawa, Canada, and analysed the number of infections and episodes of infections per person. We estimated the number of individuals who would need doxy-PEP to prevent a single bac-STI episode.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Results<\/jats:title>\n During the study period, 1819 unique gbMSM experienced 2834 positive bac-STI testing episodes (PTE), during which 3114 bac-STIs were diagnosed. Consistently, three-quarters of gbMSM did not have a subsequent infection, whether they were diagnosed with 1 infection, 2 infections or \u22653. Considering the average effectiveness of doxy-PEP in this study population, the average number needed to treat (NNT) if doxy-PEP were prescribed to all gbMSM to prevent a first PTE would have been 60. The NNT among those with their first PTE to prevent a second PTE was 8; among those with their second, the NNT was 7.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Conclusions<\/jats:title>\n Based on these data, and in alignment with the CDC guidelines, we conclude that doxy-PEP would likely have the most balanced population-level bac-STI prevention effect if given to gbMSM with \u22651 bac-STI diagnosis within the preceding 12 months. Providing doxy-PEP to all gbMSM would likely result in an overuse of antibiotics, and providing doxy-PEP only after a second PTE would result in fewer infections averted for the same proportion treated.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjph-2025-002661","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,30]],"date-time":"2025-07-30T09:10:20Z","timestamp":1753866620000},"page":"e002661","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/crossmarkpolicy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["To whom should we prescribe doxy-PEP? A retrospective review of public health surveillance data for bacterial STI diagnoses among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men in Ottawa, Canada"],"prefix":"10.1136","volume":"3","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0587-1409","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Patrick","family":"O\u2019Byrne","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Nursing, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada"},{"name":"Ottawa Public Health, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Dara Spatz","family":"Friedman","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Ottawa Public Health, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Lauren","family":"Orser","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Nursing, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada"},{"name":"Ottawa Public Health, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"239","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.1","unstructured":"World Health Organization . Implementing the global health sector strategies on hiv, viral hepatitis and sexually transmitted infections, 2022\u20132030 report on progress and gaps. 2024. Available: https:\/\/iris.who.int\/bitstream\/handle\/10665\/376814\/9789240094925-eng.pdf"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.2","unstructured":"Public Health Agency of Canada . Sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections: Guides for health professionals. 2024. Available: https:\/\/www.canada.ca\/en\/public-health\/services\/infectious-diseases\/sexual-health-sexually-transmitted-infections\/canadian-guidelines.html [Accessed 5 Jan 2025]."},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.3","unstructured":"Centers for Disease Prevention and Control . Sexually transmitted infections treatment guidelines: screening recommendations and considerations referenced in treatment guidelines and original sources. 2021. Available: https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/std\/treatment-guidelines\/screening-recommendations.htm [Accessed 5 Jan 2025]."},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1056\/NEJMoa2211934"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.15585\/mmwr.rr7302a1"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S1473-3099(17)30725-9"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1097\/OLQ.0000000000000216"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijid.2024.107186"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S1473-3099(24)00236-6"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"273","DOI":"10.1001\/jamainternmed.2024.7186","article-title":"Doxycycline Postexposure Prophylaxis and Bacterial Sexually Transmitted Infections Among Individuals Using HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis","volume":"185","author":"Traeger","year":"2025","journal-title":"JAMA Intern Med"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.11","unstructured":"Health Canada . Doxycycline (doxycycline hyclate): prescribing information and patient medication information. 2016. Available: https:\/\/health-products.canada.ca\/dpd-bdpp\/info?lang=eng&code=7627 [Accessed 3 Jan 2025]."},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Soge OO , Thibault CS , Cannon CA , et al . Potential impact of doxycycline post-exposure prophylaxis on tetracycline resistance in neisseria gonorrhoeae and colonization with tetracycline-resistant staphylococcus aureus and group a streptococcus. Clin Infect Dis [Preprint] 2025. doi:10.1093\/cid\/ciaf089","DOI":"10.1093\/cid\/ciaf089"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.13","unstructured":"City of Ottawa . Current population and household estimates. 2024. Available: https:\/\/ottawa.ca\/en\/living-ottawa\/statistics-and-demographics\/current-population-and-household-estimates#section-f580706c-6d2d-41eb-9977-34b60d1e633f [Accessed 5 Jan 2025]."},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.14","unstructured":"Ontario Ministry of Health . Sexual health and sexually transmitted\/ blood-borne infections prevention and control protocol. 2019. Available: https:\/\/files.ontario.ca\/moh-sexual-health-blood-born-infections-prevention-control-protocol-en-2019.pdf"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"571","DOI":"10.14745\/ccdr.v48i1112a10","article-title":"Antimicrobial susceptibilities of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in Canada, 2020","volume":"48","author":"Thorington","year":"2022","journal-title":"CCDR"},{"key":"2026010703060286000_3.2.e002661.16","unstructured":"Canadian Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System . Neisseria gonorrhoeae. 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Available: https:\/\/www.publichealthontario.ca\/en\/About\/Research\/Ethics\/Ethics-Services\/Risk-Screening-Tool [Accessed 5 Jan 2025]."}],"container-title":["BMJ Public Health"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/syndication.highwire.org\/content\/doi\/10.1136\/bmjph-2025-002661","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,7]],"date-time":"2026-01-07T11:06:51Z","timestamp":1767784011000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/bmjpublichealth.bmj.com\/lookup\/doi\/10.1136\/bmjph-2025-002661"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,7]]},"references-count":21,"journal-issue":{"issue":"2","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,30]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2025,7]]}},"alternative-id":["10.1136\/bmjph-2025-002661"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/bmjph-2025-002661","relation":{},"ISSN":["2753-4294"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2753-4294","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,7]]}}}