Aspire Magazine: When Your Medications Can't Fight Back

WHEN we get injured or sick, it’s common to be prescribed medication to help us feel better. In fact, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that nearly 50 percent of Americans use at least one prescription drug every 30 days. While medications can be helpful in restoring health or quality of life, there can be negative consequences if they are taken for extended periods of time or misused. For example, opioids are very effective in providing pain relief, but addiction and overdose are major concerns associated with taking them. Another common type of medication where a troubling trend is developing is antibiotics—and the reason for concern is very different.

What is an antibiotic?

Antibiotics are substances that kill bacteria or stop them from growing. Infections caused by viruses, like a cold or the flu, should not be treated with Antibiotic resistance has become a global problem, and the medical community is taking action. Aspirus has implemented an antimicrobial stewardship program that aims to ensure antibiotics are: w Used only when they are needed. w Used for the shortest duration possible. w Targeted to the specific cause of the infection. The program is a collaboration of physicians, pharmacists, nurses and lab technicians. Tristan O’Driscoll, PharmD When your medications can’t fight back Changing antibiotic use to keep them effective antibiotics. While we don’t typically worry about addiction or misuse with antibiotics, overuse can lead to problems for people even if they’ve never taken them. “Antibiotics are wonder drugs that have saved countless lives worldwide,” said Tristan O’Driscoll, PharmD, Aspirus antimicrobial stewardship program coordinator. “Antibiotics are very effective, but we should only use them when needed.” Our bodies rely on good bacteria— both inside and out—to function properly. If antibiotics are used to treat infections when it’s not appropriate, they can cause more harm than good.

Antibiotic resistance

“Antibiotics are the only drugs where their use in one person can impact the effectiveness in others,” O’Driscoll said. “When used unnecessarily, antibiotics can kill off our good bacteria and cause bad bacteria to build up a resistance against medication, even when used correctly.” Antibiotic resistance can limit treatment options and their effectiveness for some illnesses. O’Driscoll said that treating the symptoms of an illness can be an effective way to reduce the use of antibiotics and the ability of bacteria to build resistance. This includes using alternatives like pain relievers, fever reducers, saline nasal spray or drops and warm compresses, to name a few.