Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2019 Jan:118:142-149.
doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2018.10.023. Epub 2018 Oct 26.

Chemoprophylaxis against group A streptococcus during military training

Affiliations
Free article
Review

Chemoprophylaxis against group A streptococcus during military training

Bryant J Webber et al. Prev Med. 2019 Jan.
Free article

Abstract

Chemoprophylaxis with intramuscular benzathine penicillin G has been used widely by the U.S. military to prevent epidemics of group A streptococcus infections during basic training. The recent global shortage of benzathine penicillin prompted a detailed analysis of this issue in 2017 by military preventive medicine and infectious disease authorities in San Antonio, Texas, and San Diego, California, USA. This paper explores the history of group A streptococcus and chemoprophylaxis in the U.S. military training environment, current policy and practice, and challenges associated with widespread chemoprophylaxis. In light of the history presented, preventive medicine authorities at basic training centers should be extremely cautious about discontinuing benzathine penicillin chemoprophylaxis.

Keywords: Chemoprevention; Military personnel; Penicillin G benzathine; Streptococcus.

PubMed Disclaimer

Substances

LinkOut - more resources