How to tell if you need an antibiotic

So if you feel terrible, have a stuffy nose, cough and sore throat, your first thought may be about how to get an antibiotic. However, you may be surprised to learn that this is often not the best method to take care of your symptoms. While doctors often hear pleading from many of their patients, as to why they need an antibiotic, they are often reluctant to prescribe one, for many different reasons.

The major reason that antibiotics may not be what you need is that they are useless at killing viruses. Antibiotics were developed to kill bacteria, however, many of the typical garden variety illnesses, like the one described above, is just a virus. Studies have shown that viruses (including the flu) cause up to 90% of respiratory illnesses. This means that the illnesses requiring antibiotics are in the minority. Even sinus infections (one of the most common reasons for taking antibiotics) are only caused by bacteria about 2% of the time.

Many people rationalize that taking an antibiotic, even if it's just a virus can't really hurt. The truth is that taking an antibiotic when you don't need it can hurt you. More and more the evidence is showing that using antibiotics, when you don't really need to can be danger to the public health. It can help to breed bacteria that is drug resistant and can kill off healthy bacteria in the patient who is taking it. This means that toxic germs can gain more ground.

However, there are times that you may benefit from taking an antibiotic. The trick is knowing when you really need one. Even doctors admit the area of prescribing antibiotics still takes some guess work. Experienced health care professionals will state that it can be difficult to tell the difference between a mild to moderate infection from bacteria, and a serious viral infection. Doctors must rely on their experience and scientific background when deciding when to prescribe an antibiotic. Here are the most common factors that doctors take into account to determine if you need an antibiotic-

• Fever-This symptom alone won't determine if you need antibiotics, however, your doctor will determine how common it is in your area. If your doctor is seeing a lot of patients with flu, complete with fever, the chances are high that you will leave the doctors office-without an antibiotic. Recommended course of treatment is to get a flu shot.


• Length of time you've been sick-If you have had a virus for awhile, it can turn into something bacterial. So if you have been sick for weeks, most likely you will get an antibiotic. However, still the weight of evidence goes to it being a virus, since length of time is not the most effective way to decide if you need an antibiotic.


• Color of the stuff-You may think that if you are blowing out green goo, then an antibiotic is needed. However, this is perhaps the most unreliable factor when considering the need for antibiotics.


• Sore throat-Your doctor will closely examine your throat for while spots, since they can be a sign of bacteria. While your red and aching store throat may seem pretty bad to you, it's still not enough to justify an antibiotic. To determine for sure if you need an antibiotic, your doctor will most likely take a culture or a rapid antigen test. Best of the entire test only takes about 15 minutes and can be done while you are still in the office.


• Testing-The only 100% reliable way to know if you need an antibiotic is by doing tests. However, most doctors will not want to take the time and the expense of this, and will simply make their best guess, based on your symptoms and your health history.