![]() ![]() The rise of antibiotic-resistant infections Even amoxicillin carries a risk of serious side effects.īesides the risk of side effects, there is another reason to avoid prescribing antibiotics when they are not needed: antibiotic-resistant infections. One common antibiotic, Azithromycin (more commonly known as a Z-Pak), can cause a potentially fatal arrhythmia in people with pre-existing heart conditions. In fact, one out of five visits to the emergency room for an adverse drug event is due to an antibiotic. While antibiotics are prescribed often, they are not without risks. ![]() I know you want them to clear up in a few days, but we never want to give you a medication that you don’t need – especially one that won’t help you get better. Viral infections, for the most part, just have to run their course. ![]() This is because the vast majority of upper respiratory infections are viral, not bacterial. For antibiotics prescribed for acute respiratory conditions (like coughs or congestion), only half were deemed appropriate. The JAMA study found that of the 17 million prescriptions written for sinus infections – the most common reason to prescribe antibiotics – 6 million were unnecessary. There are instances in which an illness could be bacterial or viral, such as an ear or sinus infection. So which illnesses are bacterial and which are viral? They do not work against infections caused by viruses (viral infections). But antibiotics can’t cure everything.Īntibiotics treat bacterial infections. I often see patients who come in complaining about a cough, sinus pressure, or earache and leave disappointed because I didn’t prescribe an antibiotic. If your doctor prescribes an antibiotic (or before you ask for one), learn which conditions they can treat, why antibiotic resistant infections are so scary, and how doctors and patients can be smarter about antibiotic use. In fact, the first bacteria resistant to last-resort antibiotic treatment was identified in the United States in May 2016. Why is this a problem? Because it’s led to a surge in antibiotic-resistant bacteria that are becoming increasingly difficult to treat. Nearly one-third of the antibiotics prescribed in the United States aren’t appropriate for the conditions being treated, according to a May 2016 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Patients also have come to expect – and even demand – antibiotics every time they get sick. Unfortunately, many health care providers now rely too heavily on antibiotics and prescribe them when they aren’t necessary. Antibiotics revolutionized medicine and have saved countless lives over the past century. Given the safety and experience we have with antibiotics today, I think that antibiotics are important tools in treating ear infections, along with the "feel better" medications.Antibiotics often are seen as wonder drugs. But a significant percentage of those untreated ear infections did not "go away on their own" and led to serious complications such as progression of the infection to the neighboring mastoid bone (mastoiditis), ruptured ear drums, deafness, and even spread of the infection to the spinal fluid surrounding the brain ( meningitis). Before there were doctors and antibiotics, most middle ear infections did ultimately improve on their own. There are those that say that not all middle ear infections really need antibiotics. But since the infection is caused by bacteria in the middle ear space on the other side of the eardrum, nothing applied externally can help kill the bacteria through the intact eardrum. Topical anesthetic drops are also available that are applied into the ear canal and basically numb the inflamed ear drum from the outside. ![]() The "feel better" measures that work the best are oral pain medications like acetaminophen ( Tylenol) or oral pain/antiinflammatory medications, like ibuprofen ( Advil, Motrin). While there exist over-the-counter (OTC) remedies and medications that can alleviate the pain and symptoms of an ear infection, there are no OTC measures that kill the bacteria in the middle ear space that actually cause the infection. ![]()
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