When Antibiotics Quit Working
By Integricare AZ
January 24, 2017
Microscopic organisms that cannot be eliminated with usual medications are called Drug Resistant Microbes. We have been hearing about drug resistant bacteria for several years now. Just last week a 70-year-old female in Nevada died from a super bug that was resistant to all 14 kinds of antibiotics that the hospital had on hand (USATODAY.com: http://usat.ly/2izieZM). What does all this mean for the residents of Payson?
Antibiotic therapy has been used since the 1940s to fight bacterial infections and reduce mortality rates. There is a broad spectrum that kills many different species of bacteria and those with narrower focus of killing power.
Drug resistance is defined as reductions in effectiveness of antibiotic therapy with bacterial infection. Most bacteria can become resistant to at least some antibiotics.
Differences between bacteria and viruses
Viruses are not alive and are smaller than bacteria. A virus needs a living organism to grow and reproduce.
Bacteria is the simplest organism alive. They are microscopic and can live outside of living organisms that cause infection. Bacteria can be helpful or harmful.
The creation of super bugs has come from over-prescribing of antibiotics when patients do not have bacterial infections. We are quick to think that we have bacterial infection when we are ill, when it may actually be a viral infection. Viral infections do not respond to antibiotics. Remember viruses are not alive so they cannot be killed. We must use things that help control the symptoms of the illness while our immune system overcomes it. This is why it is so important to see healthcare providers when you are not feeling well so they can determine what the cause of the illness is and whether antibiotic is actually needed. The human immune system is often strong enough to overcome simple illness without any antibiotics. That is why healthcare providers often will monitor symptoms before prescribing antibiotics.
The United States has often over-prescribed antibiotics when they are not needed. When patients dont take the antibiotics as prescribed (i.e. finishing them), the bacteria are exposed to the antibiotic, but are not killed and they then develop resistance to the antibiotic.
When antibiotics fail, we all could face an infection that has the potential to cause us great harm or death. This is very important for the young and elderly populations or those that have weak immune systems from other diseases (cancer, HIV, lupus).
These are the patients who without antibiotics, could see infections shorten their lives. As a population we have taken the previous warnings about super bugs for granted, but it is becoming clear that these super bugs have arrived. Just remember the woman from Las Vegas who recently passed.
Things we can do to help reduce the formation of super bugs
January 24, 2017
Microscopic organisms that cannot be eliminated with usual medications are called Drug Resistant Microbes. We have been hearing about drug resistant bacteria for several years now. Just last week a 70-year-old female in Nevada died from a super bug that was resistant to all 14 kinds of antibiotics that the hospital had on hand (USATODAY.com: http://usat.ly/2izieZM). What does all this mean for the residents of Payson?
Antibiotic therapy has been used since the 1940s to fight bacterial infections and reduce mortality rates. There is a broad spectrum that kills many different species of bacteria and those with narrower focus of killing power.
Drug resistance is defined as reductions in effectiveness of antibiotic therapy with bacterial infection. Most bacteria can become resistant to at least some antibiotics.
Differences between bacteria and viruses
Viruses are not alive and are smaller than bacteria. A virus needs a living organism to grow and reproduce.
Bacteria is the simplest organism alive. They are microscopic and can live outside of living organisms that cause infection. Bacteria can be helpful or harmful.
The creation of super bugs has come from over-prescribing of antibiotics when patients do not have bacterial infections. We are quick to think that we have bacterial infection when we are ill, when it may actually be a viral infection. Viral infections do not respond to antibiotics. Remember viruses are not alive so they cannot be killed. We must use things that help control the symptoms of the illness while our immune system overcomes it. This is why it is so important to see healthcare providers when you are not feeling well so they can determine what the cause of the illness is and whether antibiotic is actually needed. The human immune system is often strong enough to overcome simple illness without any antibiotics. That is why healthcare providers often will monitor symptoms before prescribing antibiotics.
The United States has often over-prescribed antibiotics when they are not needed. When patients dont take the antibiotics as prescribed (i.e. finishing them), the bacteria are exposed to the antibiotic, but are not killed and they then develop resistance to the antibiotic.
When antibiotics fail, we all could face an infection that has the potential to cause us great harm or death. This is very important for the young and elderly populations or those that have weak immune systems from other diseases (cancer, HIV, lupus).
These are the patients who without antibiotics, could see infections shorten their lives. As a population we have taken the previous warnings about super bugs for granted, but it is becoming clear that these super bugs have arrived. Just remember the woman from Las Vegas who recently passed.
Things we can do to help reduce the formation of super bugs
- Stop being such a non-stop society when ill, stay home and rest so that the immune system has time to react to the illness and take care of it.
- Trust in healthcare providers when they tell you that you have a virus. This means go home and rest, again allowing immune system a chance to battle and overcome the illness. If symptoms get worse then return to your provider.
- You are contagious when you have fever again, stay home and dont infect others. Once a fever is gone for 24 hours, or you have been on an antibiotic for 24 hours, then there is less risk of spreading infection.
- Always take antibiotics as prescribed, follow your providers plan of care. DO NOT take half and then stop when feeling better! Complete the full course. Using partial prescriptions later increases the risk of development of super bugs just like not taking the first prescription as prescribed.
- Good hand washing is the key to reducing the spread of disease and super bugs. Always wash hands before eating and after handling items that others who may be sick have touched.
- Providers can help by carefully examining sick patients to determine the cause of illness. If an antibiotic is required, select a narrow spectrum that will kill the bacteria that routinely causes the illness rather than broad spectrum.