Antibiotics ONLY treat certain infections caused by bacteria, such as:

• Strep throat
• Whooping cough
• Urinary tract infection (UTI)

Antibiotics are also needed to treat life-threatening conditions caused by bacteria, such as sepsis.

Antibiotics DO NOT work on viruses, such as those that cause:

• Colds and runny noses, even if the mucus is thick, yellow, or green
• Most sore throats (except strep throat)
• Flu
• Most cases of chest colds (bronchitis)

Antibiotics also ARE NOT needed for some common bacterial infections, including:

• Many sinus infections
• Some ear infections

This is because these illnesses will usually get better on their own, without antibiotics.

Anytime antibiotics are used, they can cause side effects. Common side effects range from minor to very severe health problems and can include:

• Rash
• Nausea
• Diarrhea
• Yeast infections

More serious side effects can include:

• C. diff infection, which causes diarrhea that can lead to severe colon damage and death
• Severe and life-threatening allergic reactions

Antibiotic-resistant infections

Antibiotics are important to treat infections and have saved countless lives. However, anytime antibiotics are used, they can cause side effects and contribute to antibiotic resistance, one of the most urgent threats to the public’s health.

When antibiotics are needed, the benefits usually outweigh the risks of side effects or antibiotic resistance.

However, too many antibiotics are prescribed unnecessarily and misused, which threatens the usefulness of these important drugs.

This is why it’s important for Physicians to prescribe antibiotics ONLY when needed and people to take ONLY when advised by a physician to protect from harms caused by unnecessary antibiotic use and to combat antibiotic resistance.

Unnecessary antibiotic use happens when a person is prescribed antibiotics when they’re not needed, such as for colds and flu.

Unnecessary use also happens when a person is prescribed antibiotics for infections that are sometimes caused by bacteria that do not always need antibiotics, like many sinus infections and some ear infections.

Misuse of antibiotics happens when a person is prescribed

• the wrong antibiotic,
• the wrong dose of an antibiotic, or
• an antibiotic for the wrong length of time.

Anytime antibiotics are used, they can contribute to antibiotic resistance. This is because increases in antibiotic resistance are driven by a combination of bacteria exposed to antibiotics, and the spread of those bacteria and their mechanisms of resistance.

When antibiotics are needed, the benefits usually outweigh the risks of antibiotic resistance. However, too many antibiotics are being used unnecessarily and misused, which threatens the usefulness of these important drugs.

For example, too many antibiotics are being prescribed unnecessarily to humans and animals worldwide.

Everyone has a role to play in improving antibiotic use. Appropriate antibiotic use helps fight antibiotic resistance and ensures these lifesaving drugs will be available for future generations.

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/antibiotic-resistance

https://www.cdc.gov/antibiotic-use/q-a.html

https://www.cdc.gov/drugresistance/solutions-initiative/index.html

https://www.cdc.gov/drugresistance/protecting_patients.html

https://www.cdc.gov/antibiotic-use/week/get-involved.html