A good time of the day, dear friend! The article will be devoted to the correct use of antibiotics. Antibacterial drugs are medicines, without which many infectious diseases that are successfully treated now would lead to death. For example, pneumonia. Previously, a huge number of people died from it, and now the death from pneumonia in the hospital department of a therapist is unacceptable, especially if it was a young man. Therefore, these medicines are a great blessing for humanity. They saved millions of lives during their existence. Now these drugs are freely available in pharmacies in Russia. Their availability is a plus, but there is also a minus – many people buy them on their own and use “as horrible”. From this, the result of the action of the medicine may not be the one expected. But I will tell you how to use ANTIBIOTICS RIGHTLY in this article. Go!

First of all, it is necessary to define antibacterial drugs and antibiotics.

If it speaks very simply, ANTIBACTERIAL PREPARATIONS are substances that destroy bacteria or contribute to stopping the division of bacteria. And ANTIBIOTICS is one of the groups of medicines that make up antibacterial drugs, the peculiarity of which is that they are formed by living organisms (bacteria, fungi, etc.).

It should be noted that viruses and fungi do not concern bacteria. From this it is necessary to draw an important conclusion: antibacterial drugs, including antibiotics, help with infection (infection is a disease caused by microbes, which include unicellular fungi, bacteria and viruses), ONLY CAUSED BY BACTERIA. From viruses and fungi, they DO NOT help. Therefore, for example, with herpes they will not help. But with pneumonia, yes. Because this disease is caused by bacteria.

To antibiotics carry quite a lot of different groups of drugs. All of them do not act on all microorganisms, but on specific ones. For example, there is such a bacterium – a stick of Koch (causing tuberculosis). The drug rifampicin will destroy it, and amoxicillin is not. Because the bacterium to the latter is not sensitive (that is, it is resistant to the action of the antibiotic). Just one antibiotic destroys a bacterium, destroying its wall (BACTERICID antibiotics), while others slow down the division of bacteria and thereby prevent their spread throughout the body (BACTERIOSTATIC antibiotics).

It was a very small tour of antibiotics. He needed to understand what kind of preparations they were. And now the RULES OF APPLICATION of antibacterial drugs. After all, these drugs are a powerful tool that we can use to the fullest extent, using these rules, and we can use it as an “ape with a gun”, who considers herself to be the most intelligent and tries to cure herself blindly, without knowing anything about the gun. But she could accidentally shoot herself. And this must be avoided.

Rule # 1. Antibiotics should be used STRONGLY by INDICATIONS.

The main indication for the use of antibiotics is a serious BACTERIAL infection. It is bacterial, not viral or fungal. For example, pneumonia with a few exceptions is caused by bacteria. Therefore, antibiotics in this case are shown. But with the flu in the early days there, because the flu is caused by the corresponding virus. Antibiotics do not work on them.

About serious infections. I have friends who drink antibiotics for a cold. Here is remembered bearded anecdote: “If you treat a cold, then it is cured after 7 days. And if left untreated, it takes a week. “The cold (for acute acute respiratory infection in the hospital – ARI) is a disease that our body can cope with without antibiotics. In addition, it is not a fact that it will be caused by bacteria, there are also rhinitis (inflammation of the nasal mucosa, accompanied by a runny nose), caused by viruses. It turns out fortune-telling on the coffee grounds. Do not forget that the use of the same antibiotic does not pass without a trace. Bacteria get used to them, and eventually the medicine does not work. The situation is similar to the baiting of cockroaches. For the first time the poison acts very powerfully on the negligent inhabitants of the apartment. The number of insects decreases sharply. But there remain those units that proved insensitive to poison. It multiplies and becomes very many cockroaches that are not susceptible to this poison. And you need to buy another remedy. The same thing happens with antibiotics.

Therefore, antibiotics should be used for an infection that really threatens health – pneumonia, cystitis, pyelonephritis, purulent inflammation, etc. And the cold will pass itself on febrifuge preparations in a week.

Rule # 2. In the early days, preparations of a WIDE SPECTRUM of action are used, and in the subsequent days, those to which the flora (bacteria) are sensitive.

A very important rule, which can fully apply, unfortunately, only in a medical institution. The fact is that there are antibiotics that kill VERY MUCH different microbes (for example, the drug amoxicillin), but there are those that act on single species (for example, anti-TB drugs only work on Koch’s stick). At the onset of an infectious disease, it is UNKNOWN what type of bacteria caused the disease (and there are a lot of bacterial species). Therefore, use drugs that kill as much as possible BACTERIA of different species. And they hope that as a result of such an “atomic explosion” among the innocent, “villainous bacteria” that caused the infection will die. This is also a fortune telling, but there is no better way out at the moment.

The most proven option is to take the environment of the organism where the infection occurs, before planting antibiotics (for example, the purulent contents of the wound). The detachable is placed on a nutrient medium, where the bacteria grow in a few days. So you can determine who caused the infection, the sensitivity of bacteria to antibiotics (in other words, which of the antibiotics is best destroyed by the specific bacteria that caused the disease). As soon as the results of the study become known, new antibiotics are prescribed, which more selectively destroy “malicious” bacteria. The analysis is done on average 3-4 days. Naturally, they do it only in a medical institution, and that is not always the case. Therefore, most often, a wide-spectrum antibiotic is used, which is chosen at random (at random).

Rule # 3. The rule of three days.

According to this rule, the effectiveness of the antibiotic is determined by 3 DAY from the moment of its appointment. The drug is canceled after 3 DAYS from the moment of stopping the symptoms of the disease.

If after the start of taking an antibiotic for 3 days the symptoms of the disease decrease: the fever stops, the degree of weakness decreases, cough, dyspnea, etc., it means that ANTIBIOTIC ACT on bacteria, and it is effective. The third day from the moment of admission is the last day, when the symptoms SHOULD decrease. If this does not happen (fever, cough, shortness of breath, weakness, pain in the muscles, etc.), it is necessary to CHANGE the antibiotic on another with a different mechanism of action (for example, bactericidal change to bacteriostatic), too, WIDE SPECTRUM action. Replacement is necessary, because you did not guess with the drug. Got that one to which the bacteria are already immune. And with an infectious disease, it is important early onset of therapy. You can not wait long for the infection to spread even more in the body, which will occur when taking a drug that does not work on microorganisms.

Antibiotics are usually discarded, usually 3 days after the TOMORROW of all symptoms of infection (fever, dyspnea, weakness, cough, etc.). In some cases, the reception continues further (with severe infectious diseases, which are treated in the hospital).

Rule # 4. Reception of antibiotic by the hour.

Reception of an antibiotic should be distributed on hours. In the annotation to any antibiotic in the section “Pharmacokinetics” the time of action of the drug is indicated. For example, the drug amoxicillin lasts about 6-8 hours. In order to permanently act on the bacteria antibiotic, you need to apply it continuously. In a specific example, every 8 hours, i. E. 3 times a day, strictly by the hour. Take the interval after 8 hours: 7:00, 15:00, 23:00. If the drug works every 12 hours, then it should be taken 2 times a day every 12 hours. I hope that the principle is clear. You can also focus on the indicator half-life. But I suggest the simplest version: in any annotation to the drug is indicated in what dosage and HOW MANY times you need to drink an antibiotic. Divide 24 hours by the number of the indicated receptions there, and it becomes clear in what intervals you need to drink the medicine. For example, it is indicated 6 times a day – 24 hours: 6 = 4 hours. Therefore, every 4 hours you need to take an antibiotic. If indicated once a day – every 24 hours, etc. An important rule that many do not follow. But if the concentration of the drug in the blood is not constant, it can lead to the fact that in some hours on the bacteria the drug will not function. And this can lead to the development of SUSTAINABILITY of microorganisms to the destructive effect of the drug. This can not be allowed.

Rule # 4. Use together with antibiotics drugs to eliminate the symptoms of an infectious disease.

To eliminate the symptoms of the disease, other drugs are used together with antibiotics. For example, with pneumonia, the main symptoms are fever, dyspnea, cough with phlegm, and chest pain is possible. To eliminate fever, they use the drugs, sputum, sputum, spleen for faster separation of sputum, pain in the groin, anodyne drugs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs – NSAIDs, which are also antipyretic and anti-inflammatory). This is necessary to alleviate the condition of the patient, as well as a speedy recovery.

Rule # 5. After a course of antibiotics, restoration of the intestinal microflora with probiotics is shown.

A rule that most people never follow. The fact that antibiotics besides “harmful” bacteria also affects “good”, which are in our gastrointestinal tract. A set of beneficial bacteria is called a normal microflora. This microflora performs a lot of useful functions – it protects the gastrointestinal tract from the growth in it of “harmful” bacteria due to competition with them, forms some vitamins, participates in the digestion of certain nutrients, stimulates immunity, etc. When using antibiotics, part of this microflora also perishes , since the drug acts on many types of bacteria (a wide range of action). And this leads to the development of DYSBACTERIOSIS of the intestines. The condition may not be manifested in any way, but it can also lead to the development of infections of the gastrointestinal tract (since instead of the dead microflora, many “harmful bacteria” enter the food that inhabit empty spaces in the intestine), dyspeptic disorders (bloating, diarrhea or constipation, a violation of the assimilation of nutrients), a decrease in immunity. Dysbacteriosis of the intestine – this is not a disease, it can be in varying degrees – from mild to severe. But it is precisely known that after taking antibiotics, it develops in 99.9% of cases. To prevent this, AFTER THE ANTIBIOTICS COURSE, PROBIOTICS are used – preparations containing living beneficial bacteria. For example, such drugs include linex, bifidumbacterin, lactobacterin, etc. Reception should be from the day of antibiotic cancellation DURATION for at least 21 days. New beneficial bacteria in the medicine will take the place of the dead. And the dysbacteriosis will be eliminated.

Rule # 6. When using a combination of antibiotics, drugs with different mechanisms of action and side effects should be used.

This rule is intended for doctors. Since combinations of antibiotics are produced in serious infectious diseases, which must be treated in the hospital. But for general development, it can be taken into account that when antibiotics with the same side effects are used, summation of unwanted reactions of the body to the drug may occur. And also, that the effectiveness of drugs with different mechanisms of action is greater than when using antibiotics with the same action.

Rule # 7. With the duration of effective intake of antibiotics for more than 10 days, it is replaced by a drug with the opposite mechanism of action.

Here it should be noted that with acute infections that are treated at home, the antibiotic intake is usually no more than 5-10 days. Long-term use is already used in a medical institution, if there is evidence for this. Therefore, an ordinary person is not concerned with this. About how many days and at what dosage it is necessary to use an antibiotic. It is better to trust that information, which is indicated in the annotation to the drug.

You can also use drugs that stimulate immunity. If there is a desire. Do not also forget that to apply CONSTANTLY for the same infection (eg, a cold), the same antibiotic is NOT available. This will lead to the habituation of microflora to it. And in the end at some point the drug will not work. Therefore, if you use the same antibiotic more than 3-4 times, it is better to replace it with a drug from another group, also a broad spectrum of action.

I hope that the information was useful to you. Now you know how to properly use this powerful tool against infection – antibiotics. Be healthy, dear friend.