Spot the problem

Britain's most popular anti-acne drug has rare but potentially serious side effects, according to a report in tomorrow's British Medical Journal. A team which includes researchers from Keele and Leeds universities questions whether the antibiotic minocycline should be used routinely for acne when cheaper and safer treatments are available. Since the drug became widely available in 1972, two patients taking it have died, while 11 cases of severe arthritis and 16 of hepatitis have been reported to the Committee on Safety of Medicines, the article says.