The January/February 1999 issue of the ARCHIVES contains an editorial by Drs Abramson and Givner entitled "Bacterial Resistance Due to Antimicrobial Drug Addiction Among Physicians."
I was curious to read this article. Are there physicians who are addicted to antimicrobial drugs? Will the Betty Ford Foundation be opening a wing for such addicted physicians?
If the authors wished to discuss the inappropriate prescription of antimicrobials by physicians, that should have been stated in the title of the editorial.
I found the title both inappropriate and insulting. Physicians likely are susceptible to the same addictive substances as the general public: alcohol, analgesics, sedatives, and street drugs. However, it is inappropriate and inaccurate to suggest that physicians are addicted to antimicrobial agents because they may prescribe such medications inappropriately.
