A new shortage of a type of penicillin crucial to the fight against syphilis is alarming infectious disease experts, who warn that a protracted scarcity of the drug could worsen the U.S. epidemic of the sexually transmitted infection. The shortage, announced by the drugmaker Pfizer in a letter last month, involves Bicillin L-A, a long-acting injectable antibiotic also known as penicillin G benzathine. The company cited significant increases in demand because of the rising rate of syphilis infections, as well as Bicillin’s recent use as an alternative to amoxicillin, another antibiotic that has periodically been scarce and is prescribed for more general infections like strep throat. Steven Danehy, a spokesman for Pfizer, said it would likely take about a year for the company to ramp up production by 50 percent at its plant in Rochester, Mich., and ultimately manufacture enough Bicillin to meet demand and shore up reserves. Syphilis has been on the rise in the United States since 2000, reaching 176,713 cases in 2021, which was an increase of nearly 75 percent since 2017, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Persons: Bicillin, Steven Danehy Organizations: Pfizer, Centers for Disease Control Locations: Rochester, Mich, United States