Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

nature.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 44 posts

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#11

Post by dvdhsu »

Swizec wrote: post #7
hesdeadjim wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not quite that simple. This popped up on Reddit a few days back and in the comments a physician from India mentioned that a big part of the problem is that a) antibiotics are extremely over-used as they can be gotten over the counter and people do not understand that they do nothing for viral infections like the common cold, and b) his patients rarely finished an entire course even when they were directed to. Bo…

As a person who usually doesn't finish the full course of antibiotics if they're feeling healthy: Why does it matter?

Just because you feel "healthy" doesn't mean that all the bacteria has been killed. If you stop taking the antibiotics before the bacteria is thoroughly eradicated, the bacteria may develop a resistance to the antibiotics you took.

The antibiotics that you took are useless against this new bacteria. You will have to seek other antibiotics.

Carry this on with multiple types of antibiotics, and you have a Big Problem.

Edit: Amazing that there are four responses to this question, all within a minute of each other!

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#12

Post by celoyd »

Swizec wrote: post #7
hesdeadjim wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not quite that simple. This popped up on Reddit a few days back and in the comments a physician from India mentioned that a big part of the problem is that a) antibiotics are extremely over-used as they can be gotten over the counter and people do not understand that they do nothing for viral infections like the common cold, and b) his patients rarely finished an entire course even when they were directed to. Bo…

As a person who usually doesn't finish the full course of antibiotics if they're feeling healthy: Why does it matter?

Because you may have killed most of the bacteria but left a few with some resistance to that type of antibiotic. In classical evolutionary terms, you’ve thinned the herd to the strongest members. These surviving somewhat resistant bacteria, even if they aren’t making you noticeably sick, may then spread those genes into the general population.

It’s important not to use antibiotics if you don’t need them, and to complete the course if you do need them. Otherwise you’re selecting for strains of disease that are hard to cure.

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#13

Post by anamax »

Swizec wrote: post #7
hesdeadjim wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not quite that simple. This popped up on Reddit a few days back and in the comments a physician from India mentioned that a big part of the problem is that a) antibiotics are extremely over-used as they can be gotten over the counter and people do not understand that they do nothing for viral infections like the common cold, and b) his patients rarely finished an entire course even when they were directed to. Bo…

As a person who usually doesn't finish the full course of antibiotics if they're feeling healthy: Why does it matter?

> As a person who usually doesn't finish the full course of antibiotics if they're feeling healthy: Why does it matter?

You can feel healthy before all of the bugs are dead. The ones that remain are more resistant than the ones that died. By lettimg them survive, the baseline next time is "somewhat resistant".

Each time, this happens, the survivors are more resistant.

You're basically breeding resistant bugs. Either kill them all or leave them alone.

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#14

Post by dman »

tsotha wrote: post #6
tomjen3 wrote: post #2

That is to be expected when no new drugs are developed in half a century. We really should focus more on doing what we did with smallpox -- destroy it outright, rather than merely give it a bloody nose or two.

We will never, ever destroy TB. There are simply too many animal hosts for the disease. Hell, you can get it from your dog ( http://www.petplace.com/dogs/tuberculosis-in-dogs/page1.aspx ). The reason we could get rid of smallpox, the only reason, is that smallpox is a disease found only in human beings. There aren't a whole lot of diseases like this. Polio is one, I think. But most communicable diseases that afflict…

Time to start vaccinating animals?

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#15

Post by whimsy »

Swizec wrote: post #7
hesdeadjim wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not quite that simple. This popped up on Reddit a few days back and in the comments a physician from India mentioned that a big part of the problem is that a) antibiotics are extremely over-used as they can be gotten over the counter and people do not understand that they do nothing for viral infections like the common cold, and b) his patients rarely finished an entire course even when they were directed to. Bo…

As a person who usually doesn't finish the full course of antibiotics if they're feeling healthy: Why does it matter?

I don't understand why this was downvoted. This is an excellent question.

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#16

Post by munin »

whimsy wrote: post #15
Swizec wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a person who usually doesn't finish the full course of antibiotics if they're feeling healthy: Why does it matter?

I don't understand why this was downvoted. This is an excellent question.

good question, terrible person

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#17

Post by OstiaAntica »

dman wrote: post #14
tsotha wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We will never, ever destroy TB. There are simply too many animal hosts for the disease. Hell, you can get it from your dog ( http://www.petplace.com/dogs/tuberculosis-in-dogs/page1.aspx ). The reason we could get rid of smallpox, the only reason, is that smallpox is a disease found only in human beings. There aren't a whole lot of diseases like this. Polio is one, I think. But most communicable diseases that afflict…

Time to start vaccinating animals?

We already do, especially for rabies.

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#18

Post by carbocation »

mcbaby wrote: post #8

Vaccines and antibiotics are not the only ways, and certainly not the most effective ways, to fight bacterial infections. What we should be focusing on is developing bacteriophage technology (namely phage lysins). As every human (a eukaryote) is prone to certain viruses (which can act only on eukaryotes), every bacteria (a prokaryote), this includes strep throat, TB, etc., is vulnerable to certain viruses (which can…

People have been trying to use mycobacteriophages to treat TB since the 90s (at least) with no success: http://tbevidence.org/tbevidence_old_site_files/documents/re...

In contrast, vaccines for TB have made actual progress in animal studies: http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v17/n10/full/nm.2420.html

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#19

Post by gommm »

munin wrote: post #16
whimsy wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand why this was downvoted. This is an excellent question.

good question, terrible person

Well I wouldn't say terrible person. The problem is that this is not well explained and so most people just do not understand the problems associated with not completing the antibiotic treatment prescribed by the doctor...

It's good that he asked and now he will know why it's important and will do it.. It's a failure of education if intelligent and educated people are not aware of the consequences.

Re: Totally drug-resistant TB emerges in India

#20

Post by harshreality »

gommm wrote: post #19
munin wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

good question, terrible person

Well I wouldn't say terrible person. The problem is that this is not well explained and so most people just do not understand the problems associated with not completing the antibiotic treatment prescribed by the doctor... It's good that he asked and now he will know why it's important and will do it.. It's a failure of education if intelligent and educated people are not aware of the consequences.

It doesn't have to be well explained. Instructions for antibiotic prescriptions from a licensed doctor/pharmacy tells you to take the full course of antibiotics and not quit part way through.

I wonder what other prescription instructions he disregards... drug interaction warnings? You don't get to disregard those just because you're not familiar with the biochemistry involved.

Or, what about, "Do not look into 1W laser with remaining good eye?" If you don't know what a laser is or why it might be bad to look into it, you either research the issue, or you follow those instructions blindly (pun intended). You don't blow them off and then ask HN why looking into class 4 lasers is bad after both your eyes are damaged.

It's good that they finally asked, though. It should have been asked a long time ago, and not on HN, I think that's the point of the downvotes.

Post reply on HN