Editorial: Antibiotics are hardly a panacea

Friday, Aug. 10, 2001 | 4:24 a.m.

The overuse of antibiotics doesn't generate the kind of media attention that does other high-profile medical topics, such as research involving AIDS or cancer. But all Las Vegas Valley residents should heed last week's warning from local doctors and health officials about the dangers from the needless use of antibiotics.

Ironically, it is the very success of antibiotics in treating infections that has contributed in part to this public health issue. Patients frequently view an antibiotic as a cure-all, but the fact is that it often is taken for ailments where the drug can't even make a dent, such as is the case with a cold or the flu. Overusing antibiotics can have the effect of making a body more susceptible to infections, since different strains of bacteria eventually become more resistant to the potency of these drugs.

The concern about antibiotics hit home last year when an extremely rare strain of antibiotic-resistant bacteria appeared in Clark County. As the Sun's Emily Richmond reported last week, a 26-year-old nurse developed a post-operative infection that didn't even respond to a powerful antibiotic that is used when all other treatments don't work. The nurse was just the sixth person in the nation to acquire the infection, but she was lucky -- she was the only one who survived. The incident was rare, but doctors believe that overprescribing antibiotics could hinder the ability to treat other serious illnesses.

So who are the culprits? Some people who feel ill don't bother going to the doctor, instead they get leftover antibiotics from family members or friends. Patients suffering from a flu or severe head cold who do see the doctor often reflexively plead to be given an antibiotic. And doctors, who know better, sometimes relent to the pressure and prescribe the antibiotics anyway. In the end, there is enough blame to go around.

In today's world, consumers want everything now -- which not surprisingly accounts for the popularity of fast food and the Internet. In turn, these same consumers, when they come down with the flu or a cold, want an antibiotic that will immediately relieve them of their awful symptoms. But people, as they once did not too long ago, are just going to have to resign themselves to the lingering misery associated with the flu or a nasty head cold. Patients and doctors will have to stop viewing antibiotics as if they were modern-day elixirs -- our health depends on it.