What is the risk for an individual if he or she is treated with antibiotics and is exposed to Bacillus anthracis again?
Because inhalation anthrax in humans is so rare, we cannot be certain about the risk of reinfection; therefore, CDC recommends that another course of antibiotic treatment be given promptly if a person is reexposed to Bacillus anthracis. In animal studies of inhalation anthrax, animals given anthrax vaccine and antibiotics after exposure did not develop anthrax when reexposed 4 months after the original exposures, while animals treated with antibiotics alone became ill when reexposed.
