Study ties common antibiotics with birth defects

Researchers studying antibiotics in pregnancy have found a surprising link between common drugs used to treat urinary infections and birth defects.

[Get a job]

"The new study is the first large analysis of antibiotic use in pregnancy. It found that mothers of babies with birth defects were more likely than mothers with healthy babies to report taking two types of antibiotics during pregnancy: sulfa drugs (brand names include Thiosulfil Forte and Bactrim) and urinary germicides called nitrofurantoins (brand names include Furadantin and Macrobid)."

This is VERY different than saying the study found that pregnant women who took sulfa or nitrofurantoin were more likely to have babies with birth defects. It seems very possible that mothers who have babies with birth defects may more readily report everything they took during pregnancy, while mothers with perfectly healthy babies do not.

[S York Township]

Another A+ for junk science reporting. The lead should have been "Self repoted use of antibiotics MAYBE COULD POSSIBLY be linked to birth defects."

Another weakness of the study is that it doesn't appear to control for women who don't take any drugs and have UTI infections. Do they have higher birth defects?(if they live) If yes, then, according to Occam's Razor, the UTI is causing the defect.

Hey, here is an idea. How about a reporter with some science background reviewing crap before you publish it? Archives is a good publication but it isn't the "gold standard" in pediatrics and shouldn't this have gone into an OB/Gyn journal?

Hey, I have a study that shows DiHydrogen Monoxide (DHMO) is the main constiuent in most poison solutions and should be regulated or banned! Can you publish it?

Oh, wait, DHMO is H2O.