Persons using assistive technology might not be able to fully access information in this file. For assistance, please send e-mail to: mmwrq@cdc.gov. Type 508 Accommodation and the title of the report in the subject line of e-mail.
Notice to Readers: Shortage of Spectinomycin
In April 2001, Pharmacia Corporation (Peapack, New Jersey) announced it
was discontinuing U.S. production of spectinomycin
(Trobicin®)* because of low sales volume; remaining spectinomycin inventory will expire on June 30, 2001. No
other pharmaceutical company manufactures or sells spectinomycin in the United States.
CDC recommends treating patients infected with
Neisseria gonorrhoeae who have contraindications to cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones with spectinomycin
(1).Patients in this category include: 1) pregnant women with documented
cephalosporin allergies (fluoroquinolones are contraindicated in pregnancy); and 2) patients
with documented cephalosporin allergies who acquired gonorrhea infection in areas
where
fluoroquinolone-resistant N. gonorrhoeae is endemic (e.g., Asia, Hawaii, and
otherPacific Islands) (2).
For access to spectinomycin until June 30, contact Wendy
Johnson,Pharmacia Corporation, telephone (800) 976-7741, ext. 30110 or fax (800) 852-6421. In
response to this shortage, CDC and the Food and Drug Administration are working
with Pharmacia Corporation to identify a solution. Interim alternative
treatment recommendations are available at http://www.cdc.gov/std/specshortage.htm
or
from CDC's Fax Information System (888) 232-3299 ([888] CDC-FAXX), by
entering document number 210100.
*Use of trade names is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by CDC
or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Disclaimer
All MMWR HTML versions of articles are electronic conversions from ASCII text
into HTML. This conversion may have resulted in character translation or format errors in the HTML version.
Users should not rely on this HTML document, but are referred to the electronic PDF version and/or
the original MMWR paper copy for the official text, figures, and tables.
An original paper copy of this issue can be obtained from the Superintendent of Documents,
U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), Washington, DC 20402-9371; telephone: (202) 512-1800.
Contact GPO for current prices.
**Questions or messages regarding errors in formatting should be addressed to
mmwrq@cdc.gov.
