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For years, health researchers have warned the public of the growing danger of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria whose growth is spurred on by the overuse of antibiotic drugs. Doctors often supply antibiotic medication to patients who mistakenly believe that the drugs will help them with a given illness which, in fact, is not treatable with antibiotics (such as viral infections). Some studies indicate that doctors may over-prescribe to avoid conflicts with patients who expect antibiotic treatment for respiratory tract infections (often associated with the common cold virus), despite the fact that only 1 in 4 of those patients actually desires such a treatment.
As the superbug MRSA (short for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), a colonizing bacterium which is highly resistant to antibiotics, makes its way into more and more hospitals and other community facilities, the concern over a possible public health epidemic is growing. Between 1999 and 2006, a sevenfold increase in MRSA-related infections was found in outpatient hospital wards.
Today, additional studies indicate that not only are mortality rates and lengths of hospital stays not getting any better, but hospital-associated infections are actually on the rise, accounting for about half of all infection deaths among hospital patients. Previous research has established a link between the two, but the latest reports from scientists studying the phenomenon provide conclusive evidence that community-associated strains are actually the root of many of the infections. The Center for Disease Control reports that about 1.7 million hospital infections occur each year, with 99,000 associated fatalities.
Sepsis, pneumonia, and other infections resulting from exposure to community-associated bacteria could all be reduced by implementing additional measures of safety in hospital wards to reduce the spread of the illnesses, but funding for those measures can be difficult for doctors to justify to administrators. As one doctor notes, "Even when physicians are gung-ho to do something about infection control, they may not have buy-in from hospital administrators. They may still ask, 'Why do you need $ 500,000 if it isn't going to do anything for the bottom line?'"
The government is beginning to crack down on hospital-related infections by denying payment from Medicaid or Medicare for costs resulting from avoidable complications. Unfortunately, that may not do much good - documentation of such infections isn't easy to track, making the rule harder to enforce. Worse, hospitals could simply avoid such penalties by intentionally misclassifying infections to prevent government programs from denying payout.
In the meantime, the best rule of thumb for antibiotic use is still to try not to use them. If you visit a doctor about an illness, listen carefully to what he or she has to say about the likely cause of your illness. Often a simple blood test can determine if the condition is caused by a virus or a microbe - and remember that antibiotics won't help fight off a virus one bit. If you are prescribed an antibiotic, ask your doctor why it is necessary and what his basis for the prescription is. If the answer amounts to "just in case", you may want to seek a second opinion.
