Expert warns of antibiotic-resistant superbugs

By Pongphon Sarnsamak

The Nation

The Public Health Ministry must keep a close eye on the spread of antibiotic-resistant superbugs, as there have been reports of infections by resistant bacteria in Thailand, a health expert has warned.

Teenagers are also advised not to take antibiotics to treat acne, as this could cause drug resistance.

The warning came at an international conference titled "Dealing with Superbugs", which has become a key issue for health experts around the world.

Infectious Diseases Association of Thailand secretary Dr Kumthorn Malathum said there had been reports about patients infected with Escherichia coli with resistance to carbapenems, the antibiotics commonly used to treat many infectious diseases.

Patients have also been found with drug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae bacteria.

"Enterobacteriaceae are found in the human colon and would cause severe symptoms if there were no drugs to treat them," Kumthorn said.

Irrational and inappropriate use of carbapenems could produce a new drug-resistant strain of bacterium, a so-called "superbug" that could not be treated with drugs, he added.

Superbugs are now spreading in India, prompting the British and Swedish governments to issue announcements warning their citizens against receiving medical treatment in India and other countries in South and Southeast Asia.

"Thailand could face the same situation as India if health agencies cannot control the spread of superbugs," Kumthorn told the conference.

Meanwhile, Kiratika Paenglard of the Family Network Foundation said some parents gave a lot of money to their kids to buy antibiotic drugs to treat facial acne. Once their faces recover, they stop using the drugs instead of finishing the course of prescription.

"This inappropriate drug use among teenagers leads to drug resistance," she said.

Kumthorn suggested people should not use antibiotics to treat inflammatory conditions.

Meanwhile, physicians should advise patients about proper use of drugs and ask them to follow prescriptions strictly. "Doctors should inform patients that antibiotic drugs are not anti-inflammatory," he said.

-- The Nation 2011-05-05

Meanwhile, physicians should advise patients about proper use of drugs and ask them to follow prescriptions strictly. "Doctors should inform patients that antibiotic drugs are not anti-inflammatory," he said.

Due to the wide spread over-the-counter availability of antibiotics I doubt a Doctor is usually brought into the loop. The distribution of these drugs should be under greater supervision.

Actually there are laws about prescription drugs but they are not implemented. Different pharmacies sell prescription drugs freely so its obvious there are no actual checks, there are only laws and much like everything else in Thailand laws are not adhered to unless there is money to be made by the police enforcing them!

This Superbug theory has been around for decades now! I've yet to see an epidemic! SARS has all but disappeared, these cases of so-called Superbugs dont seem to escalate either, rare, one-off cases... if there really was a Superbug it would be impossible to contain and therefore be very prevalent. The Superbug theory is a good boat for the pharmacy companies to get on and make big $$$ pretty much like SARS. We all remember what a scandal that turned out to be.....

Drug, oil, and munitions companies running the world, "manufacturing consent".

Not sure about the superbug theory. But resistant strains do emerge very frequently and can prolong, if not prevent, timely and effective treatment.

Since doctors are often out of the treatment loop, a more realistic approach would be stringent requirements for pharmacists to counsel and caution buyers against inappropriate use. I'm sure the government could also compel manufacturers to support aggressive education measures, like the tobacco industry.

But then again, silly me, look where we are!

Meanwhile, physicians should advise patients about proper use of drugs and ask them to follow prescriptions strictly. "Doctors should inform patients that antibiotic drugs are not anti-inflammatory," he said.

That advice won't do much good when most people get their medical diagnosis from their local drugstore.

As a lot of these bugs spread orally concerned people may be happy to know a Japanese University is working on this problem

"The University of Electro-Communications in Tokyo has unveiled its latest invention: a robotic tongue that lets you kiss people over the Internet. Only in Japan."

http://www.pcauthority.com.au/News/256160,robotic-tongue-gizmo-lets-you-french-kiss-over-the-internet.aspx

This Superbug theory has been around for decades now! I've yet to see an epidemic! SARS has all but disappeared, these cases of so-called Superbugs dont seem to escalate either, rare, one-off cases... if there really was a Superbug it would be impossible to contain and therefore be very prevalent. The Superbug theory is a good boat for the pharmacy companies to get on and make big $$$ pretty much like SARS. We all remember what a scandal that turned out to be.....

Drug, oil, and munitions companies running the world, "manufacturing consent".

SARS & Bird Flu etc are virus's.

Antibiotics are for bacterial infection.

Two completely different ailments.

This Superbug theory has been around for decades now! I've yet to see an epidemic! SARS has all but disappeared, these cases of so-called Superbugs dont seem to escalate either, rare, one-off cases... if there really was a Superbug it would be impossible to contain and therefore be very prevalent. The Superbug theory is a good boat for the pharmacy companies to get on and make big $$ pretty much like SARS. We all remember what a scandal that turned out to be.....

Drug, oil, and munitions companies running the world, "manufacturing consent".

SARS & Bird Flu etc are virus's.

Antibiotics are for bacterial infection.

Two completely different ailments.

Good point BUT my point still stands... where is the bacterial epidemic?

The deaths from drug-resistent bacteria are there, all over the world, but often don't get recorded as such. MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) is one such bacterium. Lots of information about it on the Internet, eg http://www.privatehealth.co.uk/hospitaltreatment/treatment-abroad/mrsa-europe/ and http://books.google.ch/books?id=vZ1yu0Rs1PgC&pg=PT120&lpg=PT120&dq=mrsa+incidence+thailand&source=bl&ots=Dz_9PCGFbD&sig=CvEGmu4hzNiIste0H1q3pBSf4DM&hl=en&ei=cpPDTaTAH4qcOuG4ibUE&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBwQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=mrsa%20incidence%20thailand&f=false