Antibiotics and Sulpha Drugs

Challenges to clear

• Judge all four cases correctly.
• Answer the ''I feel better, can I stop?'' case — this is how resistance is bred.

The task

Antibiotics are among the most misused medicines there are. Judge each case.

What this lesson covers

• Someone has a runny nose, sore throat and mild fever — an ordinary cold. They ask a chemist for an antibiotic. Is that appropriate? Best choice: No — colds are viral, and antibiotics act only on bacteria — Taking one gives no benefit, may cause side effects, and helps drive resistance.
• A patient is prescribed a seven-day course. After three days they feel completely well and stop taking it. What is the risk? Best choice: The most resistant bacteria survive and multiply, and the infection may return harder to treat — This is exactly how drug-resistant strains arise. It is why multi-drug-resistant TB has become so serious a problem.
• Someone has tablets left over from a previous illness and offers them to a relative with similar symptoms. Is that reasonable? Best choice: No — the germ may be different, and the dose and course will not match — Similar symptoms do not mean the same organism. A part-course at the wrong dose is close to the worst possible use.
• How do sulpha drugs differ from antibiotics? Best choice: Sulpha drugs are synthetic chemicals, while antibiotics are produced by living micro-organisms — Sulphonamides are made in a laboratory; penicillin and streptomycin come from a mould and a bacterium.

Hint

Three rules: only for bacterial infection, only on prescription, and always finish the full course.