4 ms·

The most shocking one to me is always going to be penicillin. There are still people alive who were born before it was discovered. 90 years ago you could die

by lcvw 5y ago

The most shocking one to me is always going to be penicillin. There are still people alive who were born before it was discovered. 90 years ago you could die from an infected scratch and now we have the whole arsenal of modern medicine available.

mycall 5y ago
PSA: If you don't have antibiotic cream, please purchase soon (people do forget)
- londons_explore 5y ago
  How effective is antibiotic cream Vs oral antibiotics? The cream it would seem wouldn't be able to get to bacteria deepest into the cut.
  - ruined 5y ago
    if you have a wound you can't clean and bandage yourself, you should probably seek medical attention. antibiotic cream is for anything that doesn't reach that level.
    - jhgb 5y ago
      If you have a wound, even one that you can clean an bandage yourself, why would you put cream in it? You clean it and you put a sterile dressing on it.
    - Gupie 5y ago
      Or use an antiseptic cream which does not have the downside of antibiotic resistance.
    - matheusmoreira 5y ago
      Antibiotics are not necessary for wounds that are not infected. Regular hygiene is sufficient.
- FBISurveillance 5y ago
  This might be a bit of an unpopular opinion, but I think that using antibiotics unless you [absolutely] have to - like when you get one prescribed - is a problem if you think long-term because of a higher chance of antibiotics resistance. Using antibiotics "just in case" should be avoided. Here's an example of E. coli developing resistance to a _strong_ antibiotic within 12 days [0]. Unfortunately, I know more than a few people who take antibiotics even when they get common cold/flu, which doesn't make sense since viruses are not bacteria and they should get vaccinated instead. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDa4-nSc7J8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDa4-nSc7J8
  - Sharlin 5y ago
    I really hope that’s not an unpopular opinion on a site like Hacker News. Misuse (could even call it abuse, especially in the case of livestock) of antibiotics is a direct cause of antibiotics rapidly becoming less useful.
    - Akronymus 5y ago
      Oh yeah, mareks disease. Quite deadly, but the vaccine keeps the chickens alive. So, any non-vaccinated chicken is likely dead within days. Allegedly almost all chickens have it.
  - xorcist 5y ago
    Unpopular? Antibiotic resistance is one of our more severe public health problems globally, and it's only getting worse. It's not controversial that the two big drivers of this problem are the countries where antibiotics are available over-the-counter, and the widespread use of antibiotics in livestock. These practices must end if we want to be able to keep using antibiotics to save lives in the future, and it is a question of policy alone.
- jhgb 5y ago
  Uh...why would you buy an antibiotic cream? To breed resistant bacteria at home?
- matheusmoreira 5y ago
  Antibiotics must be used rationally. Bacteria evolve surprisingly quickly. They can and will develop resistance to the medication. Depending on which antibiotic it is, the bacteria might already be resistant. Staphylococcus aureus is ubiquitous and resistant to common penicillins. In this case, all it will do is kill off all the non-pathological bacteria that actively compete with the resistant bacteria for resources, allowing it to spread over a wider area.
- tzs 5y ago
  I'm not going to weigh in on antibiotic cream--a lot of commentators are making good points about overuse of antibiotics leading to antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but on the other hand most medical sites do recommend applying an antibiotic cream for a couple days after receiving a puncture wound so in fact it probably is a good idea to have some around in your first aid kit. On home medicines in general, though, I'd like to add a PSA. Put an annual event on your calendar to check your inventory to make sure you have an adequate supply and nothing is expiring soon. It really sucks to say fall off your bike and somehow sprain your entire left side, making most movement agony, and then find that you need to go to the store because you are out of ibuprofen and acetaminophen.
- lurquer 5y ago
  Or, you could just keep some silver leaf around. Place it on the wound, and your chances of infection are greatly reduced. Apparently, many of the bacteria that cause us problems can’t tolerate being in contact with silver.
tdeck 5y ago
For those interested in antibiotic history it's worth noting that sulfa drugs predate penicillin by a few years. Prontosil was the first practical antibiotic, developed in 1932; it's mentioned a few times in the All Creatures Great and Small books: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prontosil https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prontosil The first antibiotic known to modern medicine was an anti-syphilis drug called Salvarsan: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arsphenamine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arsphenamine
elboru 5y ago
Last week my mom suddenly got very sick. She got pneumonia, one of her lungs collapsed. We expected the worst, she’s not that old but she has diabetes and other health issues. Thankfully the doctors got everything under control with the help of antibiotics. It was amazing to witness how she recovered very quickly. Today she’s back home, the whole family got reunited and we enjoyed a nice meal like nothing happened last week.

by lcvw 5y ago

mycall 5y ago

PSA: If you don't have antibiotic cream, please purchase soon (people do forget)

londons_explore 5y ago
How effective is antibiotic cream Vs oral antibiotics? The cream it would seem wouldn't be able to get to bacteria deepest into the cut.
- ruined 5y ago
  if you have a wound you can't clean and bandage yourself, you should probably seek medical attention. antibiotic cream is for anything that doesn't reach that level.
  - jhgb 5y ago
    If you have a wound, even one that you can clean an bandage yourself, why would you put cream in it? You clean it and you put a sterile dressing on it.
  - Gupie 5y ago
    Or use an antiseptic cream which does not have the downside of antibiotic resistance.
  - matheusmoreira 5y ago
    Antibiotics are not necessary for wounds that are not infected. Regular hygiene is sufficient.
FBISurveillance 5y ago
This might be a bit of an unpopular opinion, but I think that using antibiotics unless you [absolutely] have to - like when you get one prescribed - is a problem if you think long-term because of a higher chance of antibiotics resistance. Using antibiotics "just in case" should be avoided. Here's an example of E. coli developing resistance to a _strong_ antibiotic within 12 days [0]. Unfortunately, I know more than a few people who take antibiotics even when they get common cold/flu, which doesn't make sense since viruses are not bacteria and they should get vaccinated instead. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDa4-nSc7J8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDa4-nSc7J8
- Sharlin 5y ago
  I really hope that’s not an unpopular opinion on a site like Hacker News. Misuse (could even call it abuse, especially in the case of livestock) of antibiotics is a direct cause of antibiotics rapidly becoming less useful.
  - Akronymus 5y ago
    Oh yeah, mareks disease. Quite deadly, but the vaccine keeps the chickens alive. So, any non-vaccinated chicken is likely dead within days. Allegedly almost all chickens have it.
- xorcist 5y ago
  Unpopular? Antibiotic resistance is one of our more severe public health problems globally, and it's only getting worse. It's not controversial that the two big drivers of this problem are the countries where antibiotics are available over-the-counter, and the widespread use of antibiotics in livestock. These practices must end if we want to be able to keep using antibiotics to save lives in the future, and it is a question of policy alone.
jhgb 5y ago
Uh...why would you buy an antibiotic cream? To breed resistant bacteria at home?
matheusmoreira 5y ago
Antibiotics must be used rationally. Bacteria evolve surprisingly quickly. They can and will develop resistance to the medication. Depending on which antibiotic it is, the bacteria might already be resistant. Staphylococcus aureus is ubiquitous and resistant to common penicillins. In this case, all it will do is kill off all the non-pathological bacteria that actively compete with the resistant bacteria for resources, allowing it to spread over a wider area.
tzs 5y ago
I'm not going to weigh in on antibiotic cream--a lot of commentators are making good points about overuse of antibiotics leading to antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but on the other hand most medical sites do recommend applying an antibiotic cream for a couple days after receiving a puncture wound so in fact it probably is a good idea to have some around in your first aid kit. On home medicines in general, though, I'd like to add a PSA. Put an annual event on your calendar to check your inventory to make sure you have an adequate supply and nothing is expiring soon. It really sucks to say fall off your bike and somehow sprain your entire left side, making most movement agony, and then find that you need to go to the store because you are out of ibuprofen and acetaminophen.
lurquer 5y ago
Or, you could just keep some silver leaf around. Place it on the wound, and your chances of infection are greatly reduced. Apparently, many of the bacteria that cause us problems can’t tolerate being in contact with silver.

tdeck 5y ago

For those interested in antibiotic history it's worth noting that sulfa drugs predate penicillin by a few years. Prontosil was the first practical antibiotic, developed in 1932; it's mentioned a few times in the All Creatures Great and Small books: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prontosil https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prontosil The first antibiotic known to modern medicine was an anti-syphilis drug called Salvarsan: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arsphenamine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arsphenamine

elboru 5y ago

Last week my mom suddenly got very sick. She got pneumonia, one of her lungs collapsed. We expected the worst, she’s not that old but she has diabetes and other health issues. Thankfully the doctors got everything under control with the help of antibiotics. It was amazing to witness how she recovered very quickly. Today she’s back home, the whole family got reunited and we enjoyed a nice meal like nothing happened last week.