Antibiotics are a group of drugs that almost every person has to deal with in one way or another. Despite the fact that these drugs are considered difficult, without them, unfortunately, it is still impossible to do - in particular, in the treatment of pneumonia. What antibiotics for pneumonia are used especially often and why they are the most effective means to combat this disease, we will discuss in the article.
What factors influence the choice of a specific medicine for pneumonia?
In medicine, pneumonia belongs to the group of serious and life-threatening illnesses of the patient. The causative agents of this disease can be both viruses and fungi. But most often, the disease is based on infection by bacteria - pneumococci, streptococci, staphylococci, etc. The lung section at the same time ceases to function normally, causing many serious consequences for the body.
Not so long ago, the main antibiotics to fight pneumonia were easy to determine, since this ailment was treated only with penicillin drugs. But, as it turned out, bacteria can develop resistance to drugs. Now these antibiotics may not be so effective, the researchers had to develop new drugs. Nowadays, a huge number of them has appeared, which is good and at the same time difficult for the doctor, since now he has to take into account a lot of factors in order to choose the appropriate treatment.
Which antibiotics for pneumonia will be prescribed now depends on many points: not only the form of the disease, but also its causes, the susceptibility of the body to this drug, as well as which drugs of this group have already been used by the patient, are taken into account.
How is treatment prescribed for pneumonia?
To make the diagnosis as accurate as possible, the type of bacteria that provoked the disease is determined by laboratory composition of the sputum of the patient. In the transcript of the analysis, as a rule, the pharmacological group is indicated, and among its preparations the doctor selects the one that has the least contraindications and side effects. It is mainly about the following groups of antibiotics :
- cephalosporins ("Aksetin", "Suprax", "Cefixim", "Zinat" and others);
- fluoroquinolones (Levofloxacin, Avelox, Moximac, Moxifloxacin, etc.);
- macrolides ("Azithromycin", "Chemomycetin", "Sumamed", etc.),
- a group of tetracyclines (Doxycycline, Tetracycline, Oxytetracycline hydrochloride, etc.).
The composition of each of them includes active substances that allow the specialist to most accurately choose what to treat pneumonia. Antibiotics selected on the basis of a specific case, and to expand the scope of drugs, quite often you have to prescribe funds from two groups at once.
The use of antibiotics depending on the pathogen
It is not so difficult to guess that each of the listed series copes best with certain types of pneumonia pathogens. So, macrolides act best on the activity of pneumococci, which provoked pneumonia. Treatment with antibiotics from the fluoroquinolone group in this case is ineffective, and these microorganisms are practically insensitive to tetracycline drugs.
For hemophilic bacillus, the most active are drugs from fluoroquinolones, and if the disease is caused by enterobacteria, drugs from the group of third generation cephalosporins. In the treatment of mycoplasma or chlamydial pneumonia, as a rule, macrolides and antibiotics from the tetracycline group are chosen.
What antibiotics are most often used
Of course, in medical practice, there are antibiotics, which are the most popular among doctors for pneumonia. So, if the patient has not reached the age of 60, he has no diabetes mellitus or pathologies of the cardiovascular system, then for the treatment of segmental or focal pneumonia, specialists prefer the well-proven drugs Aveloks and Tavanik (which, by the way, is preferable to his a cheaper analogue of Loxof or Levofloxacin). If they are taken in combination with Amoxiclav or Augmentin tablets, then a positive effect can be achieved within two weeks after the start of administration.
If the patient’s condition does not improve, and the temperature does not drop even on the fourth day, then other antibiotics should be selected against pneumonia. As a rule, in such cases, drugs “Azitro-Sandoz” or “Sumamed” are prescribed instead of “Augmentin”.
The use of Sumamed tablets (1 tab. 1 time per day) in combination with intramuscular or intravenous injections of the Fortum preparation (2 mg 2 times a day) is also considered a good combination.
Popular injections: antibiotics for pneumonia
The course of antibiotic injections for pneumonia usually takes from seven to ten days. But in no case should this treatment be carried out independently, without prescribing and observing a doctor, or interrupting the prescribed course, deciding that your health has already improved. All this will ultimately provoke drug resistance in the surviving bacteria, and an untreated or recurring pathology will be more difficult, and it’s worse to treat.
Most often in the form of injections, the following antibiotics are used for pneumonia:
- "Ceftriaxone" (it is administered every 12 hours, diluted previously in a solution of novocaine).
- "Amoxicillin" in combination with the drug "Sulbactam" (3 p. Per day).
- "Azithromycin" is administered intravenously. This is done slowly, drip, because this drug can not be injected intramuscularly.
By the way, it should be noted that when prescribing antibiotics there are several features. So, the conclusion that you need to replace this drug can only be done 2-3 days after the start of treatment. The reason for this decision may be the risk of serious side effects or excessive toxicity of any antibiotic that will not allow them to take for a long time.
Basic rules for injecting from pneumonia
Effective antibiotics for pneumonia can only be selected by a doctor. But if the patient is shown outpatient treatment, then someone close will have to give him an injection. In this case, in order not to cause unnecessary complications, several rules should be followed.
- Remember that the course of antibiotic treatment for pneumonia can not be less than 10 days.
- When prescribing drugs for injection, which are available in the form of powders, remember: they can be diluted only immediately before the procedure. Do not do this in advance!
- Saline, novocaine, lidocaine or water for injection are used to dilute antibiotics . They are taken in a standard proportion: for 1 g of the drug - 1 ml of liquid.
- Before the first injection, make a skin test. To do this, scratch the skin with a sterile disposable needle from the syringe and apply a few drops of the prescribed product to the wound. If after 15 minutes she did not turn red and did not itch, then there is no allergy to this medicine. Otherwise, it must be replaced.
- If a painful infiltrate remains after injections, an iodine grid is applied to it to accelerate resorption.
What antibiotics are considered reserve
In the case of severe pneumonia, the patient is prescribed the so-called reserve drugs. That is, potent antibiotics that are “abandoned” by doctors as a last resort (all this is done due to the easily developed resistance of bacteria to drugs).
Therefore, it is worth remembering their name. Antibiotics for severe pneumonia are Ceftazidime, Timentin, Sparfloxacin, Tientam, Grimipenem. They are not prescribed in case of mild or moderate severity of the disease, because no one is safe in the future from surgical interventions and similar health problems, when their use is especially necessary.
What antibiotics should not be used
In view of the previously mentioned high drug resistance of microorganisms that cause pneumonia, antibiotic treatment listed below will not produce the desired effect. These funds include:
- simple penicillins ("Bitsellin", "Ampicillin", "Oxacillin", etc.),
- cephalosporins of the first and second generation ("Cefazolin", "Cephalexin", "Cefamizin"),
- fluoroquinolones of the first and second generation ("Nalidixic acid", "Norfloxacin", "Ofloxacin" and "Ciprofloxacin").
Do not prescribe antibiotic therapy!
In conclusion, I want to emphasize that the use of antibiotics on their own is very dangerous, but not only because they can cause serious side effects.
Regardless of which antibiotics treat pneumonia, microorganisms very quickly develop drug resistance to them. So, every new case in which you have to take these drugs threatens that the expected action will not happen. This, of course, will delay the course of the disease and cause various difficulties. Therefore, in order not to put yourself in a difficult position in the future, do not self-medicate. And be healthy!