A gay sauna in Lyon has been linked to a possible new sexually transmitted infection spreading among homosexual men in France and Spain.
The emerging disease, being dubbed “human dermatophilosis” by French media, is caused by Dermatophilus congolensis, a bacterium that mainly affects animals in tropical or subtropical regions.
No human-to-human transmission of the infection, which causes nasty skin lesions and pustules, has previously been detected, and rare human cases have been linked to exposure to wildlife or livestock.
But a study published in scientific journal Emerging Infectious Diseases earlier this month analysed nine cases in homosexual men in Barcelona, and concluded the infections were likely to have been sexually acquired, and could be the beginning of a new STI.
“This cluster of genetically closely related cases of dermatophilosis within sexual networks suggests that this condition might be emerging as a sexually transmissible infection, although environmental transmission cannot be excluded,” the authors wrote.
“Because clinical manifestations can be nonspecific and laboratory identification is uncommon in STI clinics, cases could remain unrecognised. Clinicians should therefore suspect dermatophilosis in [homosexual men] who have a folliculitis-like pustular rash involving genital or adjacent areas and should consider oral antibiotic treatment and comprehensive STI screening.
“Cross-border surveillance could help determine whether similar cases are occurring elsewhere.”
Four of the men were HIV-positive, three were taking HIV preexposure prophylaxis medications, four had other STIs, three reported engaging in drug-fuelled “chemsex”, none had contact with livestock or wildlife, and all reported visiting homosexual venues for sex, including eight who visited a gay sauna.
Another cluster was also identified in France, where seven of nine patients in Paris and Lyon reported recent sexual activity in a gay sauna in Lyon, and genetic sequencing indicated transmission from a common source, according to the Spanish Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology.
Other cases have since been identified in other Spanish cities and the infection is believed to be spreading across Europe.
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