The Anti Infective Drugs Advisory Committee of the FDA recommended approval of Zyvox for treatment of pneumonia, skin infections and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium, a germ infamous for causing deadly infections in the abdomen, urinary tract, post-surgical wounds and even heart valves. Zyvox has been widely hailed for its effectiveness against germs that have grown resistant to other medicines, including vancomycin, now the drug of last resort for lingering infections.

The manufacturer, Pharmacia & Upjohn, said Zyvox can be delivered via injection, tablets or liquid. In the decades since the first life-saving antibiotic, penicillin, was discovered, the inappropriate use of antibiotics has yielded these wonder drugs less and less effective. Read on to learn more about antibiotic resistance and what you can do to help prevent it. Zyvox is likely to be reserved for particularly ill patients, especially those with bugs resistant to older drugs. It will join another new antibiotic, Aventis' Synercid, which was approved by the FDA last fall.