Antibiotics May Be Overprescribed to Children With Respiratory Infections
Antibiotics May Be Overprescribed to Children With Respiratory Infections
Dec. 16, 1999 (Minneapolis) - When parents take a child with an upper respiratory infection to the clinic, they walk out with an antibiotic prescription more often than most physicians admit is appropriate, according to a study in the most recent issue of Pediatrics. Almost all physicians surveyed thought antibiotic resistance was promoted by excessive antibiotics. However, physicians' practices exceeded their own definitions of proper use, the authors write.
"Parents need to know that unnecessary antibiotics can be harmful," co-researcher Scott F. Dowell, MD, MPH, tells WebMD. "They should always be used judiciously. If parents take their child to the doctor for an infection, and the doctor 'just says no' to antibiotics because the infection seems to be viral, parents should be pleased that the physician is taking a cautious approach. The easiest thing for a physician to do is to give a cursory exam and then prescribe antibiotics. The doctors giving the best care are often the ones giving antibiotics when they're needed, but avoiding them when they're unnecessary." Dowell is a medical epidemiologist in the respiratory diseases branch of the CDC.
Upper respiratory infections include the common cold, sore throats, a greenish-yellow runny nose, bronchitis, and ear infections. Some upper respiratory infections, including ear infections, are caused by bacterial infections and therefore improve with antibiotics. However, many, such as the common cold, are caused by viruses and improve without antibiotics.
Over time bacteria can become resistant to antibiotics, and overuse of the medications is often a factor in that resistance. This is a rising problem in the management of infectious diseases as more and more antibiotics become useless in treating both common and deadly infections.
In this three-part study supported by the CDC, the investigators compared the answers of 366 family physicians and pediatricians throughout the state of Georgia with the charts from the offices of 25 randomly selected pediatricians. Parents were also surveyed.
Of physicians surveyed, 97% thought that overly prescribed antibiotics aided in the development of resistant organisms, and 83% said physicians should consider this risk when they make treatment decisions about upper respiratory infections.
Antibiotics May Be Overprescribed to Children With Respiratory Infections
Dec. 16, 1999 (Minneapolis) - When parents take a child with an upper respiratory infection to the clinic, they walk out with an antibiotic prescription more often than most physicians admit is appropriate, according to a study in the most recent issue of Pediatrics. Almost all physicians surveyed thought antibiotic resistance was promoted by excessive antibiotics. However, physicians' practices exceeded their own definitions of proper use, the authors write.
"Parents need to know that unnecessary antibiotics can be harmful," co-researcher Scott F. Dowell, MD, MPH, tells WebMD. "They should always be used judiciously. If parents take their child to the doctor for an infection, and the doctor 'just says no' to antibiotics because the infection seems to be viral, parents should be pleased that the physician is taking a cautious approach. The easiest thing for a physician to do is to give a cursory exam and then prescribe antibiotics. The doctors giving the best care are often the ones giving antibiotics when they're needed, but avoiding them when they're unnecessary." Dowell is a medical epidemiologist in the respiratory diseases branch of the CDC.
Upper respiratory infections include the common cold, sore throats, a greenish-yellow runny nose, bronchitis, and ear infections. Some upper respiratory infections, including ear infections, are caused by bacterial infections and therefore improve with antibiotics. However, many, such as the common cold, are caused by viruses and improve without antibiotics.
Over time bacteria can become resistant to antibiotics, and overuse of the medications is often a factor in that resistance. This is a rising problem in the management of infectious diseases as more and more antibiotics become useless in treating both common and deadly infections.
In this three-part study supported by the CDC, the investigators compared the answers of 366 family physicians and pediatricians throughout the state of Georgia with the charts from the offices of 25 randomly selected pediatricians. Parents were also surveyed.
Of physicians surveyed, 97% thought that overly prescribed antibiotics aided in the development of resistant organisms, and 83% said physicians should consider this risk when they make treatment decisions about upper respiratory infections.
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