Dr. Spellberg, an infectious diseases specialist and member of a national task force charged with attacking antibiotic resistant infections, tells the story of this potentially grave public health crisis. He corrects the nearly universal misperception that physician misuse of antibiotics and "dirty hospitals" are responsible for causing antibiotic-resistant infections. He explains the true causes of antibiotic resistance and of the virtual collapse of antibiotic research and development. Most importantly, he advocates ways to reverse this dire trend and instead bolster the production of desperately needed new and effective antibiotics.

He warns against complacency induced by the decades-old assumption that some miracle drug will always be available to ensure the continuation of our "antibiotic era". If we do nothing, we run the risk of inviting a bleak future when infectious diseases will once again reign supreme. Then many of the medical breakthroughs that we now take for granted from routine surgery and organ transplants to intensive care and battlefield medicine might all be threatened.

He issues a call to action, explaining how, through a strong and concerted effort, we can all help prevent this nightmare scenario from happening. By following this courageous doctor's recommendations, we can assure that magic bullets will be there for our families and us in the future.

Dr. Spellberg, an infectious diseases specialist and member of a national task force charged with attacking antibiotic resistant infections, tells the story of this potentially grave public health crisis. He corrects the nearly universal misperception that physician misuse of antibiotics and "dirty hospitals" are responsible for causing antibiotic-resistant infections. He explains the true causes of antibiotic resistance and of the virtual collapse of antibiotic research and development. Most importantly, he advocates ways to reverse this dire trend and instead bolster the production of desperately needed new and effective antibiotics.

He warns against complacency induced by the decades-old assumption that some miracle drug will always be available to ensure the continuation of our "antibiotic era". If we do nothing, we run the risk of inviting a bleak future when infectious diseases will once again reign supreme. Then many of the medical breakthroughs that we now take for granted from routine surgery and organ transplants to intensive care and battlefield medicine might all be threatened.

He issues a call to action, explaining how, through a strong and concerted effort, we can all help prevent this nightmare scenario from happening. By following this courageous doctor's recommendations, we can assure that magic bullets will be there for our families and us in the future.