One remedy for antibiotic overuse

Giving patients with colds or bronchitis a kit containing common over-the-counter remedies can reduce antibiotic overuse.

Researchers from the Minnesota health department and several health insurance companies designed cough and cold kits that included Tylenol, powdered chicken soup, throat lozenges and tea bags for adults diagnosed with colds or bronchitis. In an experiment, patients at five family practice clinics got the kits; those at five other clinics did not.

The researchers tracked how many patients filled prescriptions for oral antibiotics within three days of their appointments. They found that 12.8% of patients given free kits filled prescriptions, compared with 18.2% of patients who did not get kits. The study involved nearly 11,000 patients.

“The kits provide a means to validate the patient’s illness while letting them know that they don’t need antibiotics,” said Pamala Gahr, a state epidemiologist who led the study sponsored by the Minnesota Antibiotic Resistance Collaborative. “Rest and over-the-counter medications will help them recover.”

The collaborative, which includes the Minnesota Department of Health, several health associations and large health plans, is focusing on the growing public health issue of antibiotic resistance. Doctors say the problem is exacerbated by the prescribing of antibiotic drugs for viral illnesses, such as colds, even though such medications do not work on viruses, only bacterial infections.

Gahr presented her results Feb. 29 at the International Conference on Emerging Infectious Diseases in Atlanta.