Dr Mary McCarthy: Antibiotics are not for coughs, colds and flu

Penicillin was thought of as a wonder drug during the Second World War and was reserved for the armed forces, only to be released to the general public after the war ended.

Understandably, this caused a sensation as diseases that were once known to be fatal suddenly became curable. Pneumonia went from a deadly infection that was difficult to cure on its own to a tamed disease where even the old and frail could be saved. Unsurprisingly, the life-saving potential of these wonder drugs led to the world becoming profligate in their use, popping the pills for viral infections, where they have no effect, and for animal husbandry.

In farming they are used as a growth agent for young animals and routinely to treat other infections. In many countries they are bought over the counter and in the UK they can, in some instances, be purchased over the internet.

Bacteria are capable of self preservation and react to antibiotics by mutating and changing themselves. They are clever and can find means of resistance so the antibiotic is no longer effective.

In the past, scientists have created drugs to combat this resistance but even those are not always effective and worryingly, they have been unable to come up with effective new drugs to counteract this in recent times.

We are getting close to a time when there are some bacterial infections for which we can find no reliable drug and this is a truly terrifying prospect. Though medicine has advanced, it may mean going back to a time when a minor infection could turn septic and result in death or serious illness. Death from a chest infection is nearly unheard of now but without antibiotics they will come with a much higher risk. Similarly, infections following surgical procedures will become more difficult to stop. The Chief Medical Officer, Professor Sally Davies, has warned that resistance to antibiotics poses one of the greatest risk to humanity this century has known.

In recent years, doctors have been exercising greater caution over prescribing antibiotics, reserving them for those infections that really need them. It is can often be challenging persuading patients, particularly those who have grown reliant on antibiotics, that their sore throat does not warrant a prescription or even their chest infection if they are reasonably young and fit.

It is just as hard to persuade vets and the farming community to restrict antibiotic usage as antibiotics used on farms get into the soil and into the food chain and contribute to the problem of resistance.

European Medical Organisations are making efforts to publicise this with videos being shown where doctors from all countries repeat the same message: “Antibiotic resistance is a real problem and we need to be careful with their use”.

We need to change our attitude and our practice so antibiotics are only reserved for more serious infections.

They must not be used and, indeed, are useless for coughs, colds and flu so there is no need to ask for them.

If your GP thinks they are necessary, they will be prescribed. As it says at the end of the European video and as a poster in my surgery states, “if germs can learn to resist antibiotics so can you”.

* Dr Mary McCarthy has worked at Belvidere Surgery in Shrewsbury for more than 20 years. She is chairman of the local medical committee and represents Shropshire, North Staffordshire and South Staffordshire on the General Practitioners Committee of the BMA.