(Podcast) Antibiotic treatments becoming less effective.
Antibiotics are commonly used to treat infectious disease.
But a growing number of infections are becoming resistant to these drugs that were first developed almost 70 years ago. Hung Le tells us how antibiotic resistant infections affect patients, and what health care organizations are doing to curb the issue.
But a growing number of infections are becoming resistant to these drugs that were first developed almost 70 years ago. Hung Le tells us how antibiotic resistant infections affect patients, and what health care organizations are doing to curb the issue.
Podcast for Antibiotic treatments becoming less effective | |
File Size: | 3647 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
Transcript:
In 1979 Bobbie Smith took her four year-old son Chris to a pediatrician and received a prescription for antibiotics. After her son developed diarrhea and persistent sleepiness, she went to a specialist for a second opinion.
"When I parked in underground parking, a bunch of doctors came out to help me carry Chris in, it was like a movie. You know, they just don’t do that. They were very excited because this was a test of a new theory."
Chris was diagnosed with a C. diff (See-diff) infection, caused when a bacteria known as Clostridium difficile (claus-strid-dee-um diff-fiss-seal) invades the intestines and interrupts digestion and absorption of nutrients. Emory School of Medicine professor Shonna (SHAW-na) McBride has been studying the bacteria, which she says has a natural resistance to many antibiotics.
"A lot of antibiotics that people take aren’t targeting C. diff anyway, and C. diff can grow in the presence of those antibiotics at pretty high concentrations."
The Centers for Disease Control released its first ever report on Antibiotic Resistant Threats in the United States in 2013.
In it, the CDC reports nearly two million people every year contract antibiotic resistant infections and more than 23 thousand die from them.
C. diff claims more than half of those deaths.
Vincent Zhang, who works at Eastside Medical Center observing and documenting patient-physician interactions in the Emergency Room, has noticed a trend that might be contributing to the rising rate of resistance.
"So when they leave and have their diagnosis done, and there’s no new medical prescriptions, then they’re always complaining about how they need some medication. So that’s when the doctor, out of guilt, gives them antibiotics. They are over-prescribing antibiotics to all their patients right now."
The CDC also reports that a growing number of patients contract antibiotic resistant infections in health care institutions. Phuong Nguyen, a nurse at DeKalb (Duh-Cab) Medical Center, works in a surgical unit and says patients that have had resistance in their medical record receive special orders to prevent the potential spread of resistant infections.
"Say they come back to the hospital, years later, it will still be in their history and they’ll still put them on contact precautions, even if it’s not active."
But sometimes hospital personnel don’t adhere to such strict procedures.
"I would tell you from experience most surgeons will not wait for an antibiotic to go in or give it enough time before they start."
Anyone who has had an antibiotic resistant infection is at risk of recurrence. Bobbie Smith, who also contracted the same infection her son had in 1979, is still recovering today.
"What a traumatizing disease it is. I’ve lost friends after having this because I’ll plan to do something and when I had active C. diff, I wouldn’t be able to get out the door.
In 1979 Bobbie Smith took her four year-old son Chris to a pediatrician and received a prescription for antibiotics. After her son developed diarrhea and persistent sleepiness, she went to a specialist for a second opinion.
"When I parked in underground parking, a bunch of doctors came out to help me carry Chris in, it was like a movie. You know, they just don’t do that. They were very excited because this was a test of a new theory."
Chris was diagnosed with a C. diff (See-diff) infection, caused when a bacteria known as Clostridium difficile (claus-strid-dee-um diff-fiss-seal) invades the intestines and interrupts digestion and absorption of nutrients. Emory School of Medicine professor Shonna (SHAW-na) McBride has been studying the bacteria, which she says has a natural resistance to many antibiotics.
"A lot of antibiotics that people take aren’t targeting C. diff anyway, and C. diff can grow in the presence of those antibiotics at pretty high concentrations."
The Centers for Disease Control released its first ever report on Antibiotic Resistant Threats in the United States in 2013.
In it, the CDC reports nearly two million people every year contract antibiotic resistant infections and more than 23 thousand die from them.
C. diff claims more than half of those deaths.
Vincent Zhang, who works at Eastside Medical Center observing and documenting patient-physician interactions in the Emergency Room, has noticed a trend that might be contributing to the rising rate of resistance.
"So when they leave and have their diagnosis done, and there’s no new medical prescriptions, then they’re always complaining about how they need some medication. So that’s when the doctor, out of guilt, gives them antibiotics. They are over-prescribing antibiotics to all their patients right now."
The CDC also reports that a growing number of patients contract antibiotic resistant infections in health care institutions. Phuong Nguyen, a nurse at DeKalb (Duh-Cab) Medical Center, works in a surgical unit and says patients that have had resistance in their medical record receive special orders to prevent the potential spread of resistant infections.
"Say they come back to the hospital, years later, it will still be in their history and they’ll still put them on contact precautions, even if it’s not active."
But sometimes hospital personnel don’t adhere to such strict procedures.
"I would tell you from experience most surgeons will not wait for an antibiotic to go in or give it enough time before they start."
Anyone who has had an antibiotic resistant infection is at risk of recurrence. Bobbie Smith, who also contracted the same infection her son had in 1979, is still recovering today.
"What a traumatizing disease it is. I’ve lost friends after having this because I’ll plan to do something and when I had active C. diff, I wouldn’t be able to get out the door.
7 min excerpt of Smith interview | |
File Size: | 7892 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
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