The Latest Breaking News from Antibiotics

It is something of a horror story. Children are getting sick with a perfectly treatable illness but parents are struggling to get their hands on the right drug — penicillin, no less — and some are dying. People are visiting eight, nine pharmacies and travelling to different cities to fill…

Parents and doctors alike fear meningococcal infection, which has been in the news again. Doctors never want to miss a diagnosis, as early treatment with antibiotics may be life-saving. Parents fear the disease because up to 10% of children who become infected die from the disease and its complications.

Families are being turned away from pharmacies or given tablets to break up for children instead, but the government insists there is 'no shortage'

With the rise of infections and deaths from strep A rising over the past weeks, parents have turned to home tests that involve a long cotton swab that is lightly passed over the back of a throat

Researchers have discovered particular bacteria in the bladder that may identify which postmenopausal women are more prone to recurring urinary tract infections (UTIs), and they discovered that estrogen may contribute to lowering that vulnerability.Read on for details:

Parents with sick children told the Standard that dozens of pharmacists they visited were completely out of stock

In Britain we’re used to getting what we want, when we want – but the supply issues that have emptied shelves are here to stay, says Guardian columnist Gaby Hinsliff

A number of chemists have reported difficulties obtaining amoxicillin and penicillin as concern over infection grows

Pharmacy representatives have repeatedly warned that they cannot fill all antibiotic prescriptions.