Antibiotic misuse, sometimes called antibiotic abuse or antibiotic overuse, refers to the misuse or overuse of antibiotics, with potentially serious effects on health. It is a contributing factor to the development of antibiotic resistance, including the creation of multidrug-resistant bacteria, informally called "super bugs": relatively harmless bacteria (such as staphylococcus, enterococcus and acinetobacter) can develop resistance to multiple antibiotics and cause life-threatening infections.
Video Antibiotic misuse
History of antibiotic regulation
Antibiotics have been around since 1928 when penicillin was invented by Alexander Fleming. In the 1980s antibiotics that were determined medically important for treatment of animals could be approved under veterinary oversight. In 1996, the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) was established. Starting in 2010, publications regarding antimicrobial drugs in food become an annual report. Starting in 2012, there was publicly solicited input on how data is to be collected and reported for matters relating to the use of antimicrobials for food-producing animals. Resulting from this, the FDA revised its sampling structure within NARMS with the goal of obtaining more representative livestock data for the key organisms under surveillance. "NARMS partners at CDC and USDA have published over 150 peer-reviewed research articles examining the nature and magnitude of antimicrobial resistance hazards associated with antibiotic use in food-producing animals." In 2014, the FDA began working with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to explore additional mechanisms to obtain data that is representative of antibiotic use in food-producing animals. In 2015, the FDA issues the Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) final rule. Under this rule veterinarians must authorize the use of antimicrobials within feed for the animals they serve.
Maps Antibiotic misuse
Instances of antibiotic misuse
Common situations in which antibiotics are overused include the following:
- Apparent viral respiratory illness in children should not be treated with antibiotics. If there is a diagnosis of bacterial infection, then antibiotics may be used.
- When children with ear tubes get ear infections, they should have antibiotic eardrops put into their ears to go to the infection rather than having oral antibiotics which are more likely to have unwanted side effects.
- Swimmer's ear should be treated with antibiotic eardrops, not oral antibiotics.
- Sinusitis should not be treated with antibiotics because it is usually caused by a virus, and even when it is caused by a bacteria, antibiotics are not indicated except in atypical circumstances as it usually resolves without treatment.
- Viral conjunctivitis should not be treated with antibiotics. Antibiotics should only be used with confirmation that a patient has bacterial conjunctivitis.
- Older persons often have bacteria in their urine which is detected in routine urine tests, but unless the person has the symptoms of a urinary tract infection, antibiotics should not be used in response.
- Eczema should not be treated with oral antibiotics. Dry skin can be treated with lotions or other symptom treatments.
- The use of topical antibiotics to treat surgical wounds does not reduce infection rates in comparison with non-antibiotic ointment or no ointment at all.
Social and economic impact
Antibiotics can cause severe reactions and add significantly to the cost of care. In the United States, antibiotics and anti-infectives are the leading cause of adverse effect from drugs. In a study of 32 States in 2011, antibiotics and anti-infectives accounted for nearly 24 percent of ADEs that were present on admission, and 28 percent of those that occurred during a hospital stay.
Prescribing by an infectious disease specialist compared with prescribing by a non-infectious disease specialist decreases antibiotic consumption and reduces costs.
Antibiotic resistance
Though antibiotics are required to treat severe bacterial infections, misuse has contributed to a rise in bacterial resistance. The overuse of fluoroquinolone and other antibiotics fuels antibiotic resistance in bacteria, which can inhibit the treatment of antibiotic-resistant infections. Their excessive use in children with otitis media has given rise to a breed of bacteria resistant to antibiotics entirely.
Widespread use of fluoroquinolones as a first-line antibiotic has led to decreased antibiotic sensitivity, with negative implications for serious bacterial infections such as those associated with cystic fibrosis, where quinolones are among the few viable antibiotics.
Inappropriate use
Antibiotics have no effect on viral infections such as the common cold. They are also ineffective against sore throats, which are usually viral and self-resolving. Most cases of bronchitis (90-95%) are viral as well, passing after a few weeks--the use of antibiotics against bronchitis is superfluous and can put the patient at risk of suffering adverse reactions.
Official guidelines by the American Heart Association for dental antibiotic prophylaxis call for the administration of antibiotics to prevent infective endocarditis. Though the current (2007) guidelines dictate more restricted antibiotic use, many dentists and dental patients follow the 1997 guidelines instead, leading to overuse of antibiotics.
A study by Imperial College London in February 2017 found that of 20 online websites, 9 would provide antibiotics (illegally) without a prescription to UK residents.
Antibiotics in livestock
There has been massive use of antibiotics in animal husbandry. The most abundant use of antimicrobials worldwide are in livestock; they are typically distributed in animal feed or water for purposes such as disease prevention and growth promotion. Debates have arisen surrounding the extent of the impact of these antibiotics, particularly antimicrobial growth promoters, on human antibiotic resistance. Although some sources assert that there remains a lack of knowledge on which antibiotic use generates the most risk to humans, policies and regulations have been placed to limit any harmful effects. On January 1, 2017, the FDA enacted that all human medically important feed-grade antibiotics (many prior over the counter drugs) become classified as Veterinary Feed Directive drugs (VFD). This action requires that farmers establish and work with veterinaries to receive a written VFD order. The effect of this act places a requirement on an established veterinarian-client-patient relationship (VCPR). Through this relationship, farmers will receive an increased education in the form of advice and guidance from their veterinarian.
See also
- Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics
- Natural growth promoter
References
Further reading
- Blaser, Martin J. (2014). Missing microbes : how the overuse of antibiotics is fueling our modern plagues. Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 978-0805098105.
External links
- Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work, provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Antibiotics: Misuse puts you and others at risk provided by the Mayo Clinic
Source of article : Wikipedia
0 Comments