19/01/2025
𝐀𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬!
𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘳: 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘦.
As a practicing physician, I have consistently observed a troubling trend: patients frequently come in demanding antibiotics with comments like, “𝗗𝗼𝗰, 𝗺𝗮𝗽𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝘁𝗮 𝗮𝗸𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗰.” Alarmingly, many of them jump straight to this request before even discussing their symptoms. Additionally, some patients express disappointment when I determine that antibiotics are not warranted, even if they are dealing with something as common as the flu or a viral illness.
Antibiotics are designed to combat infections caused by 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗔 in both humans and animals. They work by either killing the bacteria or inhibiting their ability to grow and multiply. However, they are 𝗨𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗔𝗥𝗬 and ineffective for conditions that are 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗔𝗟 𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗚𝗜𝗡, such as viral or fungal infections! Our caution in prescribing antibiotics is rooted in a serious concern: we aim to prevent antimicrobial resistance!
𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙗𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚? It's a phenomenon where bacteria adapt to outsmart the antibiotics designed to defeat them, rendering those drugs ineffective for future use. This could affect not just an individual, but the entire community.
This trend is not limited to my practice; I believe other healthcare professionals are experiencing it as well. It reflects a 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘺 and the expectations surrounding treatment. Antibiotics aren’t a cure-all or something to be taken lightly; they shouldn’t be treated like candy that anyone can pop whenever they feel unwell.
So, the next time you insist on getting antibiotics, consider the moment when you find yourself confined to a hospital bed for whatever reason at 80 or even 30 years old, realizing that no antibiotic will be effective for you then.
Let’s work together to raise awareness and correct this misconception. 💪🏻☺️
