[Newer antibiotics--missed efficacy in false indications]

M Vogt1

  • 1Medizinische Klinik, Kantonsspital Zug.

Praxis
|June 4, 1999
PubMed

Insights

Antibiotics are overused for viral respiratory infections, increasing costs and resistance. Uncritical use of new antibiotics with unique properties poses significant risks.

Area of Science:

  • Pharmacology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Microbiology

Context:

  • Widespread overuse of antibiotics is documented globally.
  • Physicians frequently prescribe broad-spectrum antibiotics due to perceived safety.
  • Viral respiratory infections are often inappropriately treated with antibiotics.

Purpose:

  • To highlight the excessive use of antibiotics.
  • To discuss the implications of antibiotic resistance.
  • To emphasize potential issues with novel antibiotic agents.

Summary:

  • Overprescription of antibiotics for viral respiratory illnesses is common, driven by physician preference for broad-spectrum agents.
  • This practice leads to increased healthcare costs and contributes to the critical rise of antibiotic resistance.
  • The paper will examine newly developed antibiotics and the risks associated with their indiscriminate application.

Impact:

  • Promoting judicious antibiotic stewardship.
  • Mitigating the development and spread of antimicrobial resistance.
  • Informing clinical practice regarding the appropriate use of both existing and novel antibiotics.

Related Concept Videos

Antibiotic Selection01:45

Antibiotic Selection

Researchers use antibiotic resistance genes to identify bacteria that possess a plasmid containing their gene of interest. Antibiotic resistance naturally occurs when a spontaneous DNA mutation creates changes in bacterial genes that eliminate antibiotic activity. Bacteria can share these new resistance genes with their offspring and other bacteria. The overuse and misuse of antibiotics have created a public health crisis, as resistant and multi-resistant bacteria continue to develop.Antibiotic...
Combined Effects of Drugs: Synergism01:27

Combined Effects of Drugs: Synergism

Synergism is a useful mechanism where combining two or more drugs is more effective than each constituent used alone. Such combinations are also called supra-additive interactions. The drugs collectively enhance the final therapeutic effect by acting on different targets. Another advantage is that the low dose of each constituent drug is sufficient to achieve the desired effect. This helps reduce the duration of therapy and lower the adverse effects of these drugs.
Such synergistic combinations...
Mechanism of Antibiotic Resistance in MRSA01:25

Mechanism of Antibiotic Resistance in MRSA

Antibiotic resistance in bacteria arises when microorganisms evolve the ability to withstand drugs designed to kill them or inhibit their growth, rendering once-effective treatments useless. This phenomenon, driven by genetic change and selection under antibiotic exposure, poses a profound threat to modern medicine. Mechanisms include drug-inactivating enzymes (e.g., β-lactamases), efflux pumps that eject antibiotics, mutations altering antibiotic targets, decreased drug uptake, and acquisition...
Inhibitors of Bacterial Protein Synthesis01:25

Inhibitors of Bacterial Protein Synthesis

Aminoglycosides constitute a highly potent class of bactericidal antibiotics that exert their antimicrobial effects by targeting the bacterial ribosome, specifically disrupting protein synthesis. These polycationic molecules consist of amino-modified sugars linked via glycosidic bonds to an aminocyclitol core such as 2-deoxystreptamine or streptamine. Their strong positive charges facilitate tight binding to the negatively charged phosphate backbone of ribosomal RNA (rRNA), primarily at the 16S...
Inhibitors of Bacterial DNA Synthesis01:28

Inhibitors of Bacterial DNA Synthesis

Bacterial pathogens depend on precise and efficient DNA replication to sustain infection. Two type II topoisomerases—DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV—are critical to this process, as they resolve DNA supercoiling and unlink chromosomes during replication. Fluoroquinolones, synthetic derivatives of quinolones, exploit this mechanism by stabilizing the transient DNA–enzyme cleavage complex, preventing strand religation, and causing lethal double-strand breaks. These antibiotics are selectively...
Clinical Significance of Antibiotic Resistance01:25

Clinical Significance of Antibiotic Resistance

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) presents a critical public health threat, arising from its capacity to resist β-lactam antibiotics due to acquisition of the mecA gene within the staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec). This gene encodes penicillin-binding protein 2a (PBP2a), which impairs binding efficacy of methicillin and other β-lactams. MRSA has evolved into distinct clonal lineages impacting humans and animals alike, reinforcing its significance within the One...