What You Need to Know About Antibiotics

By Mary Ellen Groff, CRNP,
Beaufort Memorial Bluffton Primary Care

Not a day goes by that a patient doesn’t come into my office desperate for antibiotics to relieve the debilitating symptoms of the flu, a cold or a bad case of bronchitis.  

As much as I would like to alleviate their misery, prescribing antibiotics isn’t going to help. Antibiotics kill bacteria, not the viruses that cause those common-but-oh-so-aggravating ailments. All the antibiotics in the world won’t make them go away.

Most coughs, sore throats and many sinus and ear infections also are caused by viral bugs. While do-it-yourself treatments, like drinking lots of fluids and gargling with salt water, can help alleviate the symptoms, the infection generally has to run its course.

One of the most significant medical achievements of the 20th century, antibiotics have been hailed as miracle drugs, saving millions of lives from infections like whooping cough, bacterial meningitis and tuberculosis.

But they are not a cure-all. In fact, taking antibiotics for anything but bacterial infections may actually do more harm than good. It can add to antibiotic resistance, a growing worldwide health problem. These powerful drugs have been so overprescribed, infectious organisms they are designed to kill have adapted to the drugs, making them less effective.

In addition, antibiotics kill the good bacteria in your body as well as the bad. Upsetting the natural balance of microorganisms living in your gut can sometimes cause diarrhea. To help repopulate your intestines with healthy bacteria, your healthcare provider may recommend you take probiotics along with the antibiotics.  

Penicillin and penicillin-based drugs like Augmentin and Amoxicillin are particularly hard on the GI system. They’re also notorious for causing the overgrowth of yeast germs that can lead to thrush or yeast infections.

Some patients also may have an allergic reaction to certain types of antibiotics. If you develop a rash or experience swelling in the face or neck, stop taking the medication and contact your healthcare provider. And the next time you need an antibiotic, be sure to tell your provider that you had an allergic reaction to that particular type of drug in the past, because the side effects of a second exposure to the medicine could be life threatening.  

When you take antibiotics, be sure to follow the directions carefully. Some medications should be taken with food, others on an empty stomach. If you follow the instructions, you’re less likely to experience side effects.

It’s also important to finish all of the medicine that you have been prescribed even if you’re feeling better. If you stop treatment too soon, some bacteria may survive and re-infect you. And it can exacerbate antibiotic resistance.

To make it easier on patients, the trend in recent years has been to give higher doses of antibiotics for a shorter period of time. Z-Paks, for instance, are taken once a day for five days.

Be sure to tell your physician your medical history, including any allergies you have, and any other medication you are taking. Some antibiotics can also interfere with certain types of drugs.

Mary Ellen Groff is a certified adult nurse practitioner with 39 years of experience in primary care. She works with internists Dr. Erik Baker and family medicine specialists Drs. Charles Sevastos, Roger Ulrich and Robert Lisle at Beaufort Memorial Bluffton Primary Care. To make an appointment with Groff or any of the physicians in the practice, call (843) 706-8690.