disease, research, antibiotic

You've most likely taken an antibiotic at least once in your lifetime. From treatments for painful strep throat or ear infections as a child, to burning urinary tract infections or itchy skin infections, antibiotics are one of the most highly utilized and important medication classes we have.  Soon, your doctor may have a new weapon in their arsenal to diagnose and target treatment:  scientists at American University have developed a rapid, highly sensitive genetic test to determine whether bacteria carry a gene that causes resistance to two common antibiotics. Their research, published in BMC Infectious Diseases, demonstrated that the new test works as accurately as culture-based methods but gives results in minutes, not hours or days. (more…)