This isn't news to most of you keeping up with this blog and Extending the Cure, but it turns out 13% of physicians in a recent national survey of internists and rheumatologists reported using antibiotics as placebos.

This statistic is worrisome for at least two reasons: first, antibiotics are not innocuous--they can have adverse effects (for details see Mike Eber's December 2nd post); second, antibiotics, unlike most other drugs are susceptable to resistance associated with overuse. Using antibiotics can be harmful to both the individual and the public health. Read more about the survey published in the British Medical Journal.

Prescribing placebos is a relatively controversial practice, but one that this project has examined in the context of flu or cold packs. These packs allow a doctor to send a patient home with something other than an antibiotic for a viral infection. The hope is that it would limit over prescription and yet satisfy patient expectations.