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May 1, 2002
U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS
"Anthrax Called More Treatable, Less Fatal Than Feared Earlier" Wall Street Journal (www.wsj.com) (05/01/02) P. D8; Chase, Marilyn
A new report in the Journal of the American Medical Association says that last year's bioterrorist attack revealed that anthrax is less fatal and more treatable than had been previously thought. In general, it was found that the best way to protect people from anthrax is for everyone exposed to the disease to go on a preventive regimen of antibiotics for about two months and to receive the anthrax vaccine. According to the lead author of the report, Tomas Inglesby, deputy director of the Center for Civilian Biodefense Strategies at Johns Hopkins University, antibiotic cocktails of two or more drugs were generally better than single-drug treatment. Inglesby added that the anthrax vaccine is "as safe as other [vaccines] that are licensed." Nevertheless, few people actually took the anthrax vaccine last year because of concerns over possible side effects. Scientists are currently using genetic engineering to try and create a new anthrax vaccine.
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