By Lauran Neergaard, Associated Press, 10/17/01

ABOUT ANTHRAX Anthrax becomes a weapon when bacteria (shown in top photo as small squiggles) are cultured into spores (larger clumps) and mailed. Anthrax background Anthrax Q & A Facts about anthrax ID tips for suspicious mail  GRAPHICS The disease Types of anthrax Anthrax as a weapon Inside an anthrax attack Disease facts Other bioterror threats Exposure Diagnosing anthrax Anthrax-fighting drugs Cleaning up contamination Suspicious mail What to look for Letters sent to Daschle, NBC  ANTHRAX EXPOSURES See complete list  LATEST NEWS Thousands of workers tested  FROM TODAY'S GLOBE Anthrax hits DC mail worker  REALVIDEO Inhaled anthrax in D.C. N.J. post office contaminated  RECENT COVERAGE 10/21/01 Anthrax in House mailroom N.H. mill was anthrax hot zone Anthrax may be domestic act Mexico rallies ranchers Mail workers receive antibiotics 10/20/01 Anthrax tied to single source Plans made in case of smallpox FBI eyes N.J. neighborhood Sales of Cipro limited 10/19/01 US: Germ was not 'weaponized' NY Post employee has anthrax CDC develops smallpox plan 2d NJ postal worker has anthrax 10/18/01 CBS staffer tests positive No new anthrax at Congress Small anthrax amounts in FL FBI offers $1m reward Anthrax found in Kenya letter Microsoft letter tests negative NJ postal workers has anthrax Pharmacist questioned on Cipro 60 on VT flight get antibiotics Thousands tested in DC 10/17/01 Two Feingold staffers exposed FDA publishes non-Cipro doses Cipro production increased FL, NY anthrax linked Pataki office exposed 10/16/01 Tests under way at ABC FBI: no direct link Man charged with hoax lie Several charged with hoaxes  CDC INFORMATION CDC: www.bt.cdc.gov/Agent /Anthrax/Anthrax.asp Hotline Number: 800-342-3557

WASHINGTON -- The government will soon publish the exact doses of medicines other than Cipro that people exposed to anthrax can take to ward off infection.

The federal government is aiming to inform panicked Americans that other widely available -- and cheaper -- antibiotics than Cipro can also fight anthrax.

The generic antibiotics doxycycline and penicillin have long been approved by the Food and Drug Administration as treatments for anthrax, while the newer Cipro was approved just last year.

But as worries spread, Cipro is the drug disappearing from pharmacy shelves. Americans are citing concerns there might not be enough treatment, even though numerous manufacturers churn out millions of doxycycline and penicillin tablets each year.

"It seems as if in the minds of some people, that's the only drug," FDA drug chief Dr. Janet Woodcock said of Cipro Wednesday. "That actually isn't the case."

So within a week, the FDA will publish specific instruction on what dose of doxycycline and penicillin can be used, and for how long, to ward off infection among people exposed to anthrax spores.

These older antibiotics are "relatively inexpensive and readily available," Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson told Congress Wednesday.

The information is important because Cipro, like all medications, can cause some serious side effects. Therefore, health officials stress it should be used only by those who really need it -- not worried people who haven't been exposed to anthrax.

All antibiotics can cause allergic reactions. Cipro can cause central nervous system side effects such as dizziness, confusion and depression, as well as ruptures of tendons. Doxycycline's main warnings mention permanently staining children's teeth and making the skin sensitive to sunlight.

"Doxycycline is better tolerated," said Dr. Jeffrey Koplan, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Indeed, people who were exposed to anthrax but show no symptoms after a few days should expect their doctors to switch them from Cipro to doxycycline, Koplan said.

Days after anthrax was first discovered in a Florida tabloid office, the CDC privately sent state health departments dosage instructions for Cipro, doxycycline and a penicillin relative called amoxicillin for anyone exposed to anthrax.

For adults, the CDC-recommended doses are 500 milligrams of Cipro twice a day for 60 days; or 100 mg of doxycycline twice a day for 60 days; or 500 mg of amoxicillin three times a day for 60 days.

The CDC recommendations warned that pregnant women were recommended to take only amoxicillin, not the other drugs; doxycycline was the first choice for the elderly; and children need special doses based on their weight.

The FDA didn't object to the CDC's recommendations but will also publish a penicillin dose.