Antibiotics can be our friends and our enemies at the same time. While in most cases they come as a solution for a severe health problem. Sometimes they are even more dangerous than not taking any. After many years of research, the truth is that even doctors are sensitive when it comes to prescribing antibiotic. Plenty of antibiotic resistance in bacteria has been found and also many allergic reactions.
The British Medical Journal’s report
According to a report published in the famous journal, there is a lack of evidence in the length of time antibiotics should be prescribed. It does not know exactly for how long the medicine should be prescribed. There is also a global growth of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, which is why some doctors might even recommend stopping the treatment once the patient feels better.
Details of the report
Martin Llewelyn, a professor of infectious diseases at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, led a team of 10 scientists trying to discover if there were studies connected to completing your antibiotic days or giving up once the patient starts to feel better.
According to their report, it is actually better to stop taking the prescription once the patient feels better, and it is a way of combating antibiotic overuse.
Previous studies
There are not many previous studies regarding antibiotic overuse or interrupting treatment. According to a publication in The Lancet in 1999, Professor Harold Lambert, emeritus professor at St. George Hospital medical school, concluded that antibiotic overuse is likely to happen when prescribing it for longer periods of time rather than shorter ones.
Findings of the European Medicines Agency
Together with the Food Safety Authority and Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, the European Medicines Agency has published last week a report in which they suggest the existence of superbugs in both humans and animals.
