Minocycline in the Treatment of Venereal Disease

Minocycline, an improved tetracycline antibiotic, was used to treat 26 cases of venereal disease, including 4 cases of primary syphilis, 5 cases of secondary syphilis, 5 cases of lymphogranuloma venereum, 6 cases of granuloma inguinale, and 6 cases of chancroid. Most patients were hospitalized to facilitate diagnosis and insure observation. An oral loading dose of 200 mg of minocycline, followed by 100 mg twice daily for 15 days, was the treatment for all cases of syphilis. In the other diseases, medication was continued until the ulcers and buboes healed. Median healing times were 15 days for lymphogranuloma venereum, 16 days for chancroid, and 21 days for granuloma inguinale. All symptoms cleared with therapy and all patients with syphilis showed satisfactory responses to serological tests during follow-up for as long as one year. The drug was well tolerated and no major unpleasant side effects were noted.