Content about antibiotics

LONDON — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a new biotech drug from GlaxoSmithKline for anthrax, the drug maker said.

GSK announced the approval of raxibacumab for adults and children who have inhaled Bacillus anthracis. The drug is designed for combination with antibiotics and for preventing inhalational anthrax when alternative therapies aren't available. The drug is the result of a project that Human Genome Sciences, now owned by GSK, began working on in 2001 in response to terrorist anthrax attacks in the United States.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — A drug maker and medical research institute will work together to identify new treatments for bacterial and viral infections.

AstraZeneca and the Broad Institute, owned jointly by Harvard University and MIT, announced Monday that they would collaborate for two years to develop medicines to treat severe infections, saying the identification of high-quality chemicals for the development of new drugs was a significant challenge. The two will use the Broad Institute's collection of 100,000 chemicals known as diversity-oriented synthesis, or DOS compounds.

KEASBEY, N.J. — Grocery chain ShopRite is offering free prenatal vitamins to further help shoppers live healthier lives and prepare for a healthy baby.

ShopRite customers can receive a free 30-day supply of Prenatal Plus or Prenatal Plus FE vitamins with a valid prescription. ShopRite also offers free 30-day supplies of select generic diabetes drugs and free 14-day supplies of select generic antibiotics. Other generic prescriptions start as low as $3.99 for a 30-day supply.

There are no membership fees or insurance required to benefit from these savings.

CHICAGO — Consumption of probiotics is associated with a reduced risk of antibiotic-associated diarrhea, a common adverse effect of antibiotic use, according to a review and meta-analysis of previous studies published in the May 9 issue of JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday issued a public warning that the use of proton-pump inhibitors or H2 blockers may be associated with an increased risk of Clostridium difficile–associated diarrhea, or CDAD.

Patients should immediately contact their healthcare professional and seek care if they take PPIs and develop diarrhea that does not improve, the agency stated.

ATLANTA — The number of antibiotic prescriptions sought for acute respiratory infections decreased by 24% between 1993 and 2008, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's latest "Morbidity and Mortality Weekly" report.

While this drop may be substantial, the CDC found that nearly 60% of antibiotic prescriptions for office visits among children ages 14 years and younger were for ARIs, most episodes of which do not require antibiotic therapy.

BRIDGEWATER, N.J. — A generic drug maker has been granted approval from the Food and Drug Administration to manufacture its version of a urinary tract infection treatment.

Amneal Pharmaceuticals said that its nitrofurantoin oral suspension in the 25-mg/5-mL strength is the first-to-market, AB-rated, generic version of Furadantin, which is made by Shionogi Pharma.

Amneal will sell its generic in 8-oz./230-mL size bottles, the company said.

The Midwest is known for flat landscapes and fertile farm fields stretching to the horizon, but it also is home to one of the country’s oldest and most successful mass merchandise chains — one with a long history of strong emphasis on pharmacy programs.


Where a growing number of chains have adopted generic discount programs, Meijer has taken to giving many drugs away for free. The list of medications that customers can obtain at no charge now includes metformin for Type 2 diabetes, prenatal vitamins and most antibiotics.


SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration on Monday teamed up with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other healthcare professionals, government, academic, international and industry partners to support Get Smart About Antibiotics Week, Nov. 15 to 21, as part of a joint effort to encourage the appropriate use of antibiotics.

ROCKVILLE, Md. The Food and Drug Administration issued a consumer warning Thursday about a potentially harmful product represented as “generic Tamiflu” sold over the Internet.

FDA tests revealed that the fraudulent product does not contain Tamiflu’s active ingredient, oseltamivir, but cloxacillin, an ingredient in the same class of antibiotics as penicillin, the government agency said.