Taking an antibiotic before or just after sex could help stop the spread of STIs

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2026-03-10 00:01

International

Image by Alina Kuptsova from Pixabay

Taking an antibiotic before or just after sex could help stop the spread of STIs among men who have sex with men and transgender women, according to an international review of the existing evidence. The research looked at 14 previous studies, with participants who were primarily men who have sex with men and transgender women, and found that the use of the antibiotic doxycycline before sex (pre-exposure prophylaxis) or just after sex (post-exposure prophylaxis) reduced the risk of acquiring any STI by 60%. Using doxycycline was linked with fewer cases of chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis.

Attachments

Note: Not all attachments are visible to the general public. Research URLs will go live after the embargo ends.

Research CSIRO Publishing, Web page Please link to the article in online versions of your report (the URL will go live after the embargo ends).

Journal/
conference: Sexual Health

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA

Funder: This research did not receive any specific funding.

Media Contact/s

Contact details are only visible to registered journalists.