New info on emerging pathogen Acinetobacter

Sorta on-topic: NPR had a story on the long term use of antibiotics to treat acne in teens. One of the things said was that they were using low-dosing to reduce some of the side effects.

What many dermatologists are trying for now is to reduce dosage. Patient Andrea Read has cut back substantially on the dose of erythromycin she takes for acne, from twice a day, to once a day, and now, every other day.

Her dermatologist, Sandra Read, who is also her mother, says the strategy seems to be working.

"We're finding that we can find and gain control and maintain control with lower dosing," notes Sandra Read. Lowering the dosage also reduces side effects, such as heartburn, yeast infections and sensitivity to the sun.

But it seems to me that low-dosing increases the risks associated with antibiotic resistance. If you're using enough to have an effect on acne, you're using enough to kill bacteria -- but by low-dosing, aren't you also lowering the resistance bar -- allowing more moderately resistant bacteria to survive than otherwise would? I figured I'd ask here, since you are the person I thought of when I heard the story.

Good question. That's long been the concern with the use of antibiotics in farm animals: they're given at sub-clinical doses to improve growth, which seems like the ideal conditions for the development of resistance. To my knowledge, that's not been rigorously tested, but I've not reviewed that area as well as I should have. Mike's an antibiotic professional, though, so you might want to hit him with that question.