Catch a cold? Take an antibiotic?
Earache? Take an antibiotic.
Acne? Take an antibiotic.
This is what people think anyway. But is this really the best way to go? Does short-term income increase long-term consequences? And is there a short-term profit to begin with? Antibiotics do not help the colds caused by the virus. Most ear infections clear as quickly as antibiotics. True, bad acne is improved with oral antibiotics, but what about the millions of teenagers who take them in just a few cycles?
Every day, doctors see problems with the use of antibiotics. Here are five reasons why doctors try to limit their use and why you should think twice about yourself before taking them.
1. Yeast infection. Often patients do not know that our body is covered with microbes, both inside and outside. Skin, mouth, vagina, intestines - all have their own bacterial population. For the most part, these microbes stay where they belong and do what they need. One of the functions of normal flora (the normal population of bacteria) is to keep the bad at bay. There are always a few bad bacteria, but usually they are replaced by good ones. However, taking an antibiotic often kills a population of good bacteria and allows another germ to capture. Most often, yeasts are trespassers. As soon as the bacteria leave the path, a few yeasts that linger on the skin, in the vagina or in the intestines, claim that the territory is their own. Overgrowth of yeast often leads to symptoms of a vaginal yeast infection or yeast skin infection, usually in warm areas such as armpits, groin or under breasts.
2 Clostridium difficile colitis. Just as yeast overgrowth can occur and produce an infection when a normal bacterium is killed, therefore there may be harmful bacteria. Often the normal intestinal flora is susceptible to the antibiotic taken for the disease. But, Clostridium difficile (or from. Diff.) Is not killed by conventional antibiotics such as penicillin, sulfa drugs, or erythromycin. Several from. different bacteria that you can use in your intestines will not harm you as long as they remain limited. But when overgrowth occurs, there is an unpleasant smell of diarrhea, sometimes accompanied by fever, dehydration or the need for hospitalization. C. diff. Colitis requires another antibiotic to rid your body of this pest.
3. Resistance. As mentioned above, some bacteria are already resistant to antibiotics. However, there is the potential for many bacteria to become resistant to useful antibiotics. What if penicillin has become ineffective for strep throat? In some cases it is already there. MRSA ( methicillin-resistant staphylococcus ) is a harmful bacterium that has emerged in recent years due to excessive use of antibiotics. If you remember your genetics in high school, you may know that when bacteria (or people) breed by billions, some mutations are inevitable. In the microbial population, this often means that when billions of bacteria multiply, several daughter bacteria inherit a mutation that makes them resistant to certain antibiotics. Usually, these mutated bacteria, although stronger in the sense that they can survive the “attack” of penicillin, are actually weaker in other ways and die a natural but premature death. However, if the entire bacterial population is subject to a cycle of antibiotics, a weaker, but penicillin-resistant bacterium can live to inhabit the environment. Then the next time penicillin is used, it will not work. Doctors see antibiotic resistance every day. This is a real threat, and at least for the moment we do not have new antibiotics on the horizon to use against these resistant bacteria.
4. Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Even if you do not kill the normal flora of the body, antibiotics can cause nausea, vomiting or diarrhea. These are chemicals, after all, chemicals that the body can reject as strangers. The class of erythromycin antibiotics is especially known for causing gastrointestinal symptoms, stimulating natural contractions of the intestine.
5. Allergy to drugs. Any patient may be allergic to any medication, and antibiotics are no exception. Although often allergic to antibiotics can manifest as a rash, true anaphylaxis can occur with the use of any antibiotic. Anaphylaxis is a common allergic reaction, which can include hives, nausea, levity, itching, swelling and difficulty breathing, like bee allergy. Every time you think you have a reaction to a medicine, call your doctor. If you have breathing problems or a feeling that you may faint, call 911. This is a medical emergency.
Just writing it reminds me to be careful when prescribing antibiotics to my patients. The next time your doctor orders a round of penicillin or another antibiotic, ask if you really need it. Often they are appointed for convenience more than necessary. If an antibiotic only helps you a day faster, you may be better able to handle it.
Copyright 2011 Cynthia J. Koelker, MD
