Online Doctor and Pharmacy
Any antibiotic should be taken by the patient specifically as prescribed, not saved for a later time or be shared around for others to take.
Bury, Lancashire (PRWEB UK) 23 January 2015
Medical Specialists® Pharmacy are delighted to announce they now provide the antibiotic Amoxicillin (penicillin) to suitable patients, for the treatment of emergency dental infections, such as abscesses, infections around the wisdom teeth or infections that have developed following dental surgery.
Penicillin antibiotics were amongst the first drugs found to be effective against certain serious diseases, with the discovery commonly credited to Scottish scientist and Nobel laureate Alexander Fleming in 1928.
Since 1928, there have been more than 100 compounds unearthed, but no new class had been discovered since 1987, until earlier this month when prototype antibiotic Teixobactin was hailed as a major breakthrough in the fight against an ever-increasing drug-resistance.
A particularly worrying global threat is the spiralling issue of antibiotic resistance, and doctors are usually burdened with the blame for this due to apparently overprescribing the drugs to patients, but an industry chief executive is pointing the finger of blame squarely at the drug companies that are producing them, citing deteriorating practices as the primary cause for this growing global crisis.
Karl Rotthier, chief executive of the Dutch DSM Sinochem Pharmaceuticals, spoke to the Telegraph earlier this month (published on 18 January) and commented how there is increasing occurrences of lax procedures taking place at drugs companies, which is fuelling the crisis.
One such instance he stated was poor waste-water management resulting in some of the rivers in Patancheru, India, having higher concentrations of active antibiotics in comparison to the blood of patients receiving antibiotic treatment.
Mr Rotthier gravely warns that the planet is risking “sleepwalking” towards the end of modern medicine and could be heading towards a “post-antibiotic era”.
He said: “For a couple of years now we have seen antimicrobial resistance rising and rising and you get scared because if we don’t do anything we risk deaths of up to 10 million by 2050.”
Rotthier added: “Most antibiotics are now produced in China and India and I do not think it is unjust to say that the environmental conditions have been quite different in these regions.
“Poor controls mean that antibiotics are leaking out and getting into drinking water. They are in the fish and cattle that we eat, and global travel and exports mean bacteria are travelling. That is making a greater contribution to the growth of antibiotic resistance than over-prescribing.”
NHS Choices further warn that antibiotic resistance is a daily threat across every hospital in England and Europe and can compromise the safety of patients, listing the common causes of antibiotic resistance and how the problem can be addressed (24 September, 2014).
The problem of antibiotics becoming ineffective is also detailed by The World Health Organisation on their Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) page (April 2014). AMR is a broader term that includes drugs to combat other microbes too, such as parasites (malaria).
WHO state that AMR “is resistance of a microorganism to an antimicrobial drug that was originally effective for treatment of infections caused by it.
“Resistant microorganisms (including bacteria, fungi, viruses and parasites) are able to withstand attack by antimicrobial drugs, such as antibacterial drugs (e.g., antibiotics), antifungals, antivirals, and antimalarials, so that standard treatments become ineffective and infections persist, increasing the risk of spread to others.
“The evolution of resistant strains is a natural phenomenon that occurs when microorganisms replicate themselves erroneously or when resistant traits are exchanged between them. The use and misuse of antimicrobial drugs accelerates the emergence of drug-resistant strains. Poor infection control practices, inadequate sanitary conditions and inappropriate food-handling encourages the further spread of AMR.”
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control says the problem of AMR is responsible for the loss of a staggering 25,000 lives in Europe alone, with costs exceeding €1.5 billion in healthcare expenses and productivity losses.
Medical Specialists® warn that overusing antibiotics and prescribing them inappropriately are two huge issues that are aiding the huge problem of antibiotic resistance. It is vital that patients use antibiotics – such as Amoxicillin - in the correct manner, to use the right drug, at the right dose, at the right time for the right duration. Any antibiotic should be taken by the patient specifically as prescribed, not saved for a later time or be shared around for others to take.
The previously mentioned Amoxicillin is now available from Medical Specialists®. Prices from as little as £0.10* a capsule.
(*based on private prescription)