One of the most common instructions a physician or pharmacist will give you is to finish all of the medication in an antibiotic prescription. Not doing so it’s thought, could lead to dangerous mutations. The idea is that the longer an antibiotic stays in the body, the more likely all the bacteria will be killed, leaving none behind to mutate and become resistant. It’s thought not finishing a course of antibiotics then may lead to treatment-resistant diseases or “superbugs.”
Consider antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea, a growing concern for world health officials. This is especially due to the historic rise of STIs in most developed countries. If left uncured, gonorrhea can lead to complications, including infertility. The CDC reported nearly 400,000 gonorrhea cases in 2015, a record high. This is the regular kind. And the trend continues upward. The thing is, every time a new class of antibiotics is introduced to gonorrhea, it changes. The bacteria mutates and evolves with every interaction. So does taking all your meds prevent this or encourage treatment-resistance?
Treatment-resistant bacteria is on the rise, and there’s debate over what’s causing it. Getty Images.
Some medical experts are now questioning the idea of finishing a course of antibiotics. Their argument was published recently in the British Medical Journal. The piece was entitled, “The Antibiotic Course Has Had Its Day.” In it, the authors state that there is “…little evidence that failing to complete a prescribed antibiotic course contributes to antibiotic resistance.” From this viewpoint, taking the medication after you already feel better may not avoid antibiotic resistance, but encourage it.
How so? The authors argue that the more exposure the bacteria has to the antibiotic, the more likely it is to become resistant. This is true both in terms of a human population as well as on the individual level.
Prof. Martin Llewelyn BSc, FRCP, DTMH, PhD, and nine other British colleagues authored the study. Dr. Llewelyn hails from Brighton and Sussex Medical School. In the study, he and fellow authors write, “The idea…
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