News & Perspective

(CIDRAP News) – Amid the devastation left by hurricane Katrina on the US Gulf Coast, fears of infectious disease outbreaks have added to the distress. Some of those concerns are solidly grounded, while others are less so, disease experts say.

(CIDRAP News) – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has decided to ban the use of the antibiotic enrofloxacin (Baytril) in poultry because of the risk that it promotes drug-resistant bacteria that can be harmful to humans.

(CIDRAP News) – The federal government yesterday announced reductions in the rates of several common foodborne bacterial infections in 2004, especially the potentially life-threatening Escherichia coli O157:H7.

(CIDRAP News) – A study of antibiotic-resistant Campylobacter levels on retail chicken products suggests that the pathogen lingers in chickens long after antibiotic use among the birds is stopped.