Question:medium
Two related recalls. (a) The drug of choice to treat Chlamydia infection in pregnancy, when azithromycin is an option, is: A. Tetracycline, B. Doxycycline, C. Erythromycin, D. Azithromycin (Ans D). (b) When azithromycin is not listed and the choice is between A. Tetracycline, B. Doxycycline, C. Erythromycin, D. Penicillin, the drug of choice is Erythromycin (Ans C). The single combined answer below addresses the version that lists azithromycin. Which is the drug of choice for Chlamydia in pregnancy?
Two related recalls. (a) The drug of choice to treat Chlamydia infection in pregnancy, when azithromycin is an option, is: A. Tetracycline, B. Doxycycline, C. Erythromycin, D. Azithromycin (Ans D). (b) When azithromycin is not listed and the choice is between A. Tetracycline, B. Doxycycline, C. Erythromycin, D. Penicillin, the drug of choice is Erythromycin (Ans C). The single combined answer below addresses the version that lists azithromycin. Which is the drug of choice for Chlamydia in pregnancy?
Show Hint
Tetracyclines are banned in pregnancy; pick the single-dose macrolide.
Updated On: Jun 24, 2026
- Tetracycline
- Doxycycline
- Erythromycin
- Azithromycin
Show Solution
The Correct Option is D
Solution and Explanation
Think of the problem in two filters: safety in pregnancy first, then convenience and cure rate.
Safety filter: the tetracyclines (tetracycline, doxycycline) are dropped at once because they deposit in fetal teeth and bone and are banned in pregnancy. Penicillin, when it appears, is irrelevant here because it does not reliably clear the intracellular Chlamydia organism. That leaves the macrolides as the safe choices.
Convenience and cure filter: erythromycin works and is safe, but the course is long and the stomach upset is bad, so women often stop it early. Azithromycin clears Chlamydia with a single 1 g dose, which is far easier to take and gives high cure rates, so guidelines name it the drug of choice whenever it is on the list.
So in the set that includes azithromycin, azithromycin wins. In the set that swaps azithromycin out for penicillin, the safe and effective remaining macrolide, erythromycin, is the answer instead.
\[\boxed{\text{Azithromycin (Erythromycin in the no-azithromycin version)}}\]
Safety filter: the tetracyclines (tetracycline, doxycycline) are dropped at once because they deposit in fetal teeth and bone and are banned in pregnancy. Penicillin, when it appears, is irrelevant here because it does not reliably clear the intracellular Chlamydia organism. That leaves the macrolides as the safe choices.
Convenience and cure filter: erythromycin works and is safe, but the course is long and the stomach upset is bad, so women often stop it early. Azithromycin clears Chlamydia with a single 1 g dose, which is far easier to take and gives high cure rates, so guidelines name it the drug of choice whenever it is on the list.
So in the set that includes azithromycin, azithromycin wins. In the set that swaps azithromycin out for penicillin, the safe and effective remaining macrolide, erythromycin, is the answer instead.
\[\boxed{\text{Azithromycin (Erythromycin in the no-azithromycin version)}}\]
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