Letter: Anthrax scare affects unborn

Tuesday, Nov. 6, 2001 | 8:36 a.m.

It seems the deeper you look, the darker the potential consequences become. Take this latest perverse contamination of mail with anthrax that has claimed the lives of innocent Americans simply going about their daily routines.

On its face the danger is deadly, costly and disruptive. Lives have been lost, jobs are in question and efficiency compromised. And now, another growing concern ... the seemingly unavoidable practice of prescribing and administering powerful antibiotics in the name of safety and prevention to people who may have no real need for them.

The medical warnings associated with the abuse and overuse of prescription drugs and, most importantly, antibiotics is not new. In this latest event, which now has thousands of people taking Cipro and more recently doxycycline, there is yet another danger to consider. What if you are a woman and you happen to be pregnant?

Bad enough that no formal studies have yet to be completed on how Cipro affects pregnancy, but doxycycline is part of a class of drugs that can endanger fetuses, including staining primary teeth, weakening tooth enamel and stunting bone growth.

It's tragic enough to deal with the daily concerns of this new war. How much more painful to realize that an unborn child could also be a victim in this latest tragedy.

C. GOMES