3 ms·

Doctors throw antibiotics at viral infections as a placebo cure _all_ the time. Neither that activity nor these Amazon resellers make a dent in antibiotic use w

by Phlarp 12y ago

Doctors throw antibiotics at viral infections as a placebo cure _all_ the time. Neither that activity nor these Amazon resellers make a dent in antibiotic use when compared to factory farms and traditional cattle operations. Like it or not, antibiotics are a staple in the diets of a large majority of this country's mammalian population

potatolicious 12y ago
So... because X problem is worse in Y context, we should not solve X problem in Z context?
bsder 12y ago
Yes, but for placebos they proscribe low-level, relatively harmless antibiotics instead of nuclear-level drugs like clindamycin that decimate your internal flora and leave you with galloping diarrhea that can kill you.
cantrevealname 12y ago
> Doctors throw antibiotics at viral infections as a placebo cure That's actually not what doctors say. When they can't determine if an infection is viral or bacterial, they treat it on the chance that it's bacterial (since we have a known treatment for bacterial infections and don't usually have a treatment for viral infections). Tonsillitis is a good example: About 50% of tonsillitis cases are viral and 50% bacterial. "Relying on clinical presentation and history alone is unreliable in differentiating streptococcal from viral tonsillitis."[1] And bacterial tonsillitis can be quite serious. So it seems reasonable to go ahead and treat with antibiotics even when there's a 50% chance that it's wasted, because the other 50% chance was that the treatment was highly beneficial. [1] http://bestbets.org/bets/bet.php?id=2024 http://bestbets.org/bets/bet.php?id=2024
gnaritas 12y ago
> Doctors throw antibiotics at viral infections as a placebo cure _all_ the time. A fact pulled directly from your ass. Doctors never prescribe antibiotics for viral infections; antibiotics are for bacterial infections and no they don't just hand them out willy nilly.
- dang 12y ago
  > A fact pulled directly from your ass Please don't be rude on Hacker News. This comment would be much better without the first sentence.
  - gnaritas 12y ago
    I don't agree.

by Phlarp 12y ago

potatolicious 12y ago

So... because X problem is worse in Y context, we should not solve X problem in Z context?

bsder 12y ago

Yes, but for placebos they proscribe low-level, relatively harmless antibiotics instead of nuclear-level drugs like clindamycin that decimate your internal flora and leave you with galloping diarrhea that can kill you.

cantrevealname 12y ago

> Doctors throw antibiotics at viral infections as a placebo cure That's actually not what doctors say. When they can't determine if an infection is viral or bacterial, they treat it on the chance that it's bacterial (since we have a known treatment for bacterial infections and don't usually have a treatment for viral infections). Tonsillitis is a good example: About 50% of tonsillitis cases are viral and 50% bacterial. "Relying on clinical presentation and history alone is unreliable in differentiating streptococcal from viral tonsillitis."[1] And bacterial tonsillitis can be quite serious. So it seems reasonable to go ahead and treat with antibiotics even when there's a 50% chance that it's wasted, because the other 50% chance was that the treatment was highly beneficial. [1] http://bestbets.org/bets/bet.php?id=2024 http://bestbets.org/bets/bet.php?id=2024

gnaritas 12y ago

> Doctors throw antibiotics at viral infections as a placebo cure _all_ the time. A fact pulled directly from your ass. Doctors never prescribe antibiotics for viral infections; antibiotics are for bacterial infections and no they don't just hand them out willy nilly.

dang 12y ago
> A fact pulled directly from your ass Please don't be rude on Hacker News. This comment would be much better without the first sentence.
- gnaritas 12y ago
  I don't agree.