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Antibiotic overuse: doctors blame parental pressure

The February 1999 issue of the journal Pediatrics reports on a study that finds parental pressure is the main reason doctors give when pressed for reasons why they prescribe antibiotics to children in inappropriate situations. 610 pediatricians, all members of the American Academy of Pediatrics from around the country were surveyed. One in three of the surveyed doctors said they often or occasionally prescribed antibiotics they believed to be unnecessary to appease the parents. Antibiotic overuse is a major health problem. in 1980, 4.2 million prescriptions were written for amoxicillin, most commonly used for ear infections. By 1992, the number of prescriptions increased by 194% to 12.4 million. The use of cephalosporin antibiotics grew 687% during that same time. The problem with antibiotic overuse, the researchers note, is that doctors continue to prescribe antibiotics for viral problems such as colds and flu that they know the drugs are ineffective against.

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