That was the discussion topic in one of my lectures today. That's what a senior Microbiology lecturer said to us.
Post Anti-Biotic Age
- Thread starter Phage
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That was the discussion topic in one of my lectures today. That's what a senior Microbiology lecturer said to us.
You have to start somewhere and if we did it we would still have far lower drug resistant outbreaks than them. Most are in hospitals though. Get matrons back.
It's also not just people taking them that don't need to, a big issue is those that need them stop taking the. To soon, when they feel better. Rather than following the Instructions and making sure that it's been wiped from your body.
Soldato
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Yes, the US have appauling methods of mass food production and slaughtering, various documentaries exist, they are unlikely to stop force feeding their animals chemicals, major resistances start in animals and spread to humans from there.
It will happen, we will develop new immunities, or new drugs, or we will succum to the infections.
Death of children will be the thing that hits people the hardest, and they will seek to blame everyone else, when it is society the major problem.
As someone stated most chest infections are viral, and they throw amoxy at it on occasion, but in a perfect NHS the resources would be there to lab test, final if there is bacterial infection, find what it is killed by and then prescribe, but we simply do not have the resources.
It will happen, we will develop new immunities, or new drugs, or we will succum to the infections.
Death of children will be the thing that hits people the hardest, and they will seek to blame everyone else, when it is society the major problem.
As someone stated most chest infections are viral, and they throw amoxy at it on occasion, but in a perfect NHS the resources would be there to lab test, final if there is bacterial infection, find what it is killed by and then prescribe, but we simply do not have the resources.
yes but with testing it can easily take 10yrs+ to get to market, they cant rush it, remember thalidomide
The world would not end if antibiotics failed. There are people alive today who grew up in a world without antibiotics.
However,
Infant/Maternal mortality would be a good bit higher.
Only essential surgery could be contemplated (IE No cosmetic surgery)
Many complex surgical procedures would become impossible. (No more heart lung transplants for instance)
People would be much more likely to die as a result of traumatic injuries. Even minor ones like a cut finger that became infected.
(Also, it would be more likely that injuries to limbs will be treated by amputation rather than by attempting to save the limb.)
But apart from that, life would go on as normal
We would still have vaccinations for instance, But we would have to take cleanliness much more seriously, (No more poly cotton nurses uniforms washed at 30C for instance) even freedom for travel may have to be restricted (Drs certificates before being allowed to fly for instance, My parents even in the 50's had to show that they were free of TB before being permitted to fly to Rhodesia) and Drs would have to go back to the library to look up the older treatments
But the world would not end.
However,
Infant/Maternal mortality would be a good bit higher.
Only essential surgery could be contemplated (IE No cosmetic surgery)
Many complex surgical procedures would become impossible. (No more heart lung transplants for instance)
People would be much more likely to die as a result of traumatic injuries. Even minor ones like a cut finger that became infected.
(Also, it would be more likely that injuries to limbs will be treated by amputation rather than by attempting to save the limb.)
But apart from that, life would go on as normal
We would still have vaccinations for instance, But we would have to take cleanliness much more seriously, (No more poly cotton nurses uniforms washed at 30C for instance) even freedom for travel may have to be restricted (Drs certificates before being allowed to fly for instance, My parents even in the 50's had to show that they were free of TB before being permitted to fly to Rhodesia) and Drs would have to go back to the library to look up the older treatments
But the world would not end.
yup... and also population growth is starting to slow down and level off - standards of life in third world countries is improving as is access to medicine and contraception, actual poverty is declining as a %
it does seem ridiculous that the last resort antibiotics are being used on livestock... we don't even need to consume meat in the quantities we do and frankly using our potentiall most valuable antibiotics on animals is ridiculous
GPs in the UK seem to dish out antibiotics too frequently but in some overseas countries they're available without prescription... any newly developed antibiotics need to be humans only and well controlled
GPs in the UK seem to dish out antibiotics too frequently but in some overseas countries they're available without prescription... any newly developed antibiotics need to be humans only and well controlled
It's always worth remembering that the sources of most antibiotics are actually bacteria and fungi themselves, and soil can be full of all sorts of microbes.
The big deal with this news isn't that resistance has never been seen before, it's because these resistance genes are in a form which can move pretty easily between bacteria, and there seems to be a reservoir of it in pig farms.
Soldato
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As said, it's a world problem. Pumping creatures full of antibiotics all the time 'just because' was always going to end one way. Careful monitoring is the only way. And that will never happen while humans are about.... man will always be responsible for ending the ourselves in one way or another - no one else. It will be war or disease.
Man of Honour
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Isn't silver a potent antibiotic?
A few metals are yeah, but if someone has an infection you can't really inject them full of it. There was a really interesting study a while ago that showed if you replaced commonly-touched surfaces in hospitals like bedrails and doorhandles with copper then the rates of hospital-acquired infections droppped though, so it could be useful in some places.
There are some people that take Colloidal Silver which I wouldn't recommend as having metal floating around in your body especially when it can't get rid of it is a bad idea. I think people end up Kidney and nerve damage eventually, a few people actually turned a silver colour too :/
It's about time we switched to eating synthetic meat.
Get the cost down and there will be no need for animal farming and the wasting of precious antibiotics. Restrictions on pets would help too.
No doubt we are overpopulated though. Just because there is physical space for humans doesn't mean it's a good idea to cram us all together. What can we do with seven billion people that we can't do with one?
Get the cost down and there will be no need for animal farming and the wasting of precious antibiotics. Restrictions on pets would help too.
No doubt we are overpopulated though. Just because there is physical space for humans doesn't mean it's a good idea to cram us all together. What can we do with seven billion people that we can't do with one?
Soldato
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Of course he doesn't.
About 6999999999 more things.