Click your poison - Purchasing Cipro on Internet

The medical community has chastised Internet sites that sell Cipro.

It doesn't take the family doctor to get anthrax-fighting Cipro anymore -- just a computer, an Internet connection and a credit card.

With the country's collective psyche shattered by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 and the possibly related aftermath that includes the nationwide anthrax scare, many are turning to the World Wide Web to self-medicate against the deadly disease.

At www.2-buy-cipro.com, Web surfers can stock up on the antibiotic Ciprofloxacin just by answering a few simple questions and pecking in your credit card number. Six tablets cost $120. Rush orders cost $15 more.

Another Web site offers what it calls an anthrax 30-day prevention pack for almost $300. Other sites include Cipro and gas masks. While they may be called "prevention packs," Cipro is actually only a treatment for anthrax and does not make users immune.

The medical community has chastised the sites, saying they are profiting on the country's fears as well as potentially putting people at risk. They note that Cipro can have severe side effects and people shouldn't take it without proper medical supervision.

Also, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services issued a statement on Thursday saying that Missouri has not had one positive anthrax case. The statement told Missourians not to panic.

The Cipro sites, many of which are actively recruiting customers by e-mail, utilize what they call a "physician network," a group of faceless doctors who evaluate Web patients' medical histories and approve the prescription requests without ever taking a glance at a patient.

Health officials say that's not nearly enough.

'So many scams'

"There are so many scams on the Internet, you never know what you're getting," said C.C. Swarens, executive vice president of the Missouri State Medical Society in Jefferson City. "How can you even be sure a doctor ever lays his eyes on your application?"

Getting a prescription from a Web site based on a simple questionnaire does not "sufficiently meet the standards for good medical care," he said.

At least one local pharmacist, John McMullin, who owns John's Pharmacy, said he doesn't mind the sites, however.

"They've been out there for several years," he said. "They're nothing new. If people want to stock up, let them stock up."

Most of the sites don't have phone numbers or addresses, and e-mailed questions weren't answered Thursday.

Theodore Grieshop, a Cape Girardeau physician specializing in infectious diseases, said people don't need to be stocking up on Cipro and should only take it under a doctor's supervision.

"Cipro is not like taking sugar. There are serious side effects to taking this medicine," he said. "A person could probably do as much harm as good."

Misleading questions

It's easy to be misleading on the Web site questionnaires, and without a doctor's trained eye it's much harder to catch potential problems, Grieshop said.

"It's just not a good idea," he said. "I would strongly discourage it."

Among side effects, which include dizziness and nausea, Cipro inhibits bone growth in pregnant women and in children. Anyone taking Theophylline, an asthma medication, and Cipro is at risk of serious reactions such as hypertension, dysrhythmias and increased heart rate.

Grieshop said improper use could also lead to strains of the disease that are resistant to treatment.

"It's very powerful and it's very useful, so we should be trying to limit use so that it stays that way," Grieshop said.

Tom McGinnis, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's director of pharmacy, said the Web sites first began popping up about three years ago primarily to promote Viagra. But they have their problems and have been investigated by the FDA and man states.

"A valid prescription must include some relationship between the prescriber and the patient," McGinnis said. "They need to evaluate the risk information and that needs to be followed up on. On these sites, a patient can't get back to a doctor, even if there is a doctor, which sometimes there is not."

McGinnis said people who need health care should see a doctor.

"If you don't, you're really taking a big risk," he said.

smoyers@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137