Antimicrobial resistance. What is it?
Since its discovery, antibiotics have become the cornerstone of modern medicine. This is probably the only group of medicines that are widely used in almost all areas of clinical practice. The reason is simple – antibiotics are designed to fight infections, and infections can affect various organs and, accordingly, cause a variety of diseases. However, the constant irrational and improper use of antibiotics contributes to the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance.
What is antibiotic resistance?
Antibiotics are a powerful weapon, but when used improperly, they cause absolute harm. Antibiotic resistance occurs when microorganisms become invulnerable to the action of antibiotics.
Many people may feel that by taking antibiotics correctly, they are protecting themselves from the problem of antibiotic resistance. But this is fundamentally wrong. This problem is global in nature. It's not about people, resistance is produced by microorganisms, in particular, bacteria. And they are transmitted from person to person and cause deadly infections, against which antibiotics are powerless. Therefore, the rules for the correct use of antibiotics should be followed by everyone.
What is the cause of antibiotic resistance?
First of all, this is the self-designation of antibiotics, as well as the haphazard, ill-conceived excessive use of them. There are often cases when, without consulting a doctor, the patient begins to take antibacterial drugs on the advice of a friend, relative, acquaintance, or the Internet. Antibiotics that helped the previous time may also be used.
The incorrect use of antibiotics in a short course also contributes to the formation of resistance to antibiotics, i.e. many patients stop taking the drug as soon as they feel the slightest relief. After a few days, they have an exacerbation, and they resume taking the same antibiotic that they used, or purchase another antibacterial drug. This erratic behavior also accelerates the formation of antibiotic resistance.
In what diseases are antibiotics most often abused?
As an example of the abuse of antibacterial drugs, you can cite their use for viral infections (ARVI, influenza and colds). According to statistics, the most common reason for pharmacists to recommend antibiotics from the group of ceftriaxones is a cold, i.e., in fact, they advise antibacterial therapy for a viral infection, when it is completely ineffective.
What is the danger of antibiotic resistance?
Patients with infections caused by resistant bacteria have an increased risk of negative clinical outcomes and death. In addition, the increasing scale of resistance poses a serious risk for many surgical procedures that are performed under the preventive protection of antibiotics. Without effective antimicrobial drugs, medical procedures such as organ transplants, chemotherapy for cancer, and surgery (such as caesarean sections and hip replacements) will become extremely risky.
Excessive and improper use of antibiotics increases the risk of losing their effectiveness, leading to an increase in the number of serious diseases and deaths. All this ultimately threatens all of us with the lack of a treatment that can effectively treat infections.
What can and should we do in such conditions?
Take antibiotics only as prescribed by a doctor and in the presence of strict indications, strictly observing the prescribed course (duration) of therapy. The action of the antibacterial drug is directed at the pathogenic bacterium, so it must be taken until all of them are destroyed, and not until the moment when it feels a little better.
The patient should receive precise instructions on the scheme and duration of taking antibiotics, and also understand that a full course of treatment is necessary to prevent a relapse of the infection.
Remember, antibiotics are an invaluable, irreplaceable resource!
Only the doctor should make a decision on the appropriateness of prescribing antibiotics in each specific situation!
Chief Freelance Therapy Specialist
health departments of the Lipetsk region
Lakhin Dmitry Ivanovich
