Patients ‘do not understand risks of unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions’

New US research has highlighted the fact that many misconceptions currently exist about the potential risk of prescribing antibiotics unnecessarily.

A team from George Washington, Cornell and Johns Hopkins universities surveyed 113 patients in an urban hospital to test their understanding of antibiotics. It was found that most simply did not understand the potential downsides of antibiotic usage.

Indeed, it was shown that patients may want antibiotics even if they know that the drugs will not do anything to help when they have viral infections. This is due to a belief that the medication will not do anything to worsen their condition and might prove helpful.

It is poorly understood that unnecessary antibiotics can have side effects such as secondary infections and allergic reactions, while the fact that overuse of antibiotics can lead to the development of highly-resistant superbugs is also neglected.

The findings underline the need for better patient education on this crucial issue.

David Broniatowski, assistant professor in George Washington University's school of engineering and applied science, said: "We need to let them know that antibiotics can have some pretty bad side effects and that they will definitely not help cure a viral infection."