Posted on 09/30/2001 11:18:34 PM PDT by seeker41
Also, I have family members who have already had problems with drugs in the -cillin family, so we'll have to be prepared in other ways.
Bye bye blue zone
btw the bye bye blue zone was gallows humor. however with the current shootdown orders for straying aircraft, this scenario sounds unlikely
We should recruit PETA to go over there!
This is what got my attention initally. Now dispersal is another matter, heck I even thought about mosquito spraying trucks like we see here in the summer especially afer the great Houston flood in June.
We should recruit PETA to go over there!
And send Je$$e Jacka$$ and Al $harpton as their emissaries...
A number of possible therapeutic strategies have yet to be fully explored experimentally or submitted for approval to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The recommendations provided do not represent uses currently approved by the FDA but are a consensus based on best available information of recent studies.
Given the fulminant course of inhalation anthrax, early antibiotic administration is essential to maximize patient survival. Given the difficulty in achieving timely microbiologic diagnosis of anthrax, all persons with fever or evidence of systemic disease in an area where anthrax cases are occurring should be treated empirically for anthrax until the disease is excluded.
No clinical studies exist of the treatment of inhalation anthrax in humans. Most naturally occurring strains of anthrax are sensitive to penicillin, and penicillin historically has been the preferred therapy for the treatment of anthrax. Penicillin and doxycycline are FDA-approved antibiotics for anthrax. Doxycycline is the preferred option from the tetracycline class of antibiotics because of its proven efficacy in monkey studies. Experts currently recommend initiation of ciprofloxacin or other fluoroquinolones in adults with presumed inhalation anthrax infection. Following a terrorist attack, assume resistance to penicillin and tetracycline class antibiotics until laboratory testing demonstrates otherwise.
In a contained casualty setting (a situation in which a modest number of patients require therapy), initiate intravenous antibiotics for symptomatic patients. In adults, ciprofloxacin 400 mg IV q12h is recommended. Traditionally, ciprofloxacin and other fluoroquinolones are not recommended for use in children younger than 16-18 years because of a link to permanent arthropathy in adolescent animals and transient arthropathy in a small number of children.
Balancing these small risks against the real risk of death and resistant strains of B anthracis, experts recommend that ciprofloxacin be given to a pediatric population for initial therapy or postexposure prophylaxis following anthrax attack. In children, ciprofloxacin at 20-30 mg/kg/d IV in 2 daily doses (not to exceed 10 g/d) is recommended. If antibiotic susceptibility testing allows, substitute intravenous penicillin for the fluoroquinolones. For adults and children older than 12 years, penicillin G at 4 million U IV q4h is recommended for 60 days. Doxycycline at 100 mg IV q12h for 60 days is an acceptable alternative for adults. For children younger than 12 years, penicillin G is dosed 50,000 U/kg IV q6h for 60 days.
In experimental models, antibiotic therapy during anthrax infection has prevented development of an immune response. This suggests that even if the antibiotic-treated patient survives anthrax infection, risk of recurrence remains for at least 60 days. Oral therapy should replace intravenous therapy as soon as a patient's clinical condition improves.
Historically, the treatment of cutaneous anthrax has been oral penicillin. Recent recommendations suggest that oral fluoroquinolones or tetracycline antibiotics, as well as amoxicillin, are suitable alternatives if antibiotic susceptibility is proven. Although previous guidelines have suggested treating cutaneous anthrax with 7-10 days of therapy, recent recommendations suggest treatment for 60 days in the setting of bioterrorism, given the presumed exposure to the primary aerosol. Treatment of cutaneous anthrax generally prevents progression to systemic disease, although it does not prevent the formation and evolution of the eschar.
Other antibiotics effective against B anthracis in vitro include chloramphenicol, erythromycin, clindamycin, extended spectrum penicillins, macrolides, aminoglycosides, vancomycin, cefazolin, and other first-generation cephalosporins.
In pregnant women, experts recommend that ciprofloxacin be given for therapy and postexposure prophylaxis following anthrax attack. Substitute intravenous penicillin for the fluoroquinolones if microbiologic testing confirms penicillin susceptibility.
GO TO THIS LINK (it's about the only HTML tag I can do so I get a kick out of helping other FReepers any time I get a chance).
ps: Hi, backhoe. Thanks for your links.
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