# More Antibiotice Misuse: Kids' Sinusitis



## Mike NoLomotil (Jun 6, 2000)

April 3, 2001 http://wire.ap.org/?FRONTID=HOME&SITE=ILMO2&enter=Go AP WireANTIBIOTICS DO LITTLE AGAINST SINUSITISMNL___________ www.leapallergy.com


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## Mike NoLomotil (Jun 6, 2000)

Hmmm....as somone said its true...the shortcut stopped going to the article only to the AP portal.Let me go find it againMNL________________________________TEXT of Antibiotics in Sinusitis Article:Antibiotics have little or no effect against most acute sinus infections in children, despite guidelines that recommend their use when symptoms linger, a study found. The study comes amid growing concern that the overuse of antibiotics is creating drug-resistant germs. Acute sinusitis is an inflammation of membranes lining the sinuses. It affects perhaps 20 million U.S. adults and children a year and is among the most common childhood ailments for which antibiotics are routinely prescribed. Serious complications such as meningitis can occur but are rare. Sinusitis can be caused by viruses or, far less commonly, bacteria ï¿½ which are the only germs antibiotics work against. The ailment is difficult to diagnose in children because their symptoms often are simply those of a lingering cold and cough without the facial pain and fever typically seen in adults. The study, which involved 161 children who had up to four weeks of symptoms and were diagnosed with acute sinusitis, appears in the April issue of the journal Pediatrics. It was led by Dr. Jane Garbutt of the Washington University School of Medicine. The youngsters, 8 years old on average, were given one of two common penicillin-type amoxicillin drugs or dummy pills for two weeks. By the 14th day, about 80 percent of the children in all three groups showed similar improvement. ``Antimicrobial treatment offered no benefit in overall symptom resolution, duration of symptoms, recovery to usual functional status, days missed from school or child care, or relapse and recurrence of sinus symptoms,'' the researchers said. The results echo research in adults and follow recommendations issued in March by the American College of Physicians-American Society of Internal Medicine. That group says over-the-counter remedies rather than antibiotics generally are the best treatment for adults. The guidelines for children were issued in 1998 by specialists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and elsewhere. The guidelines note that sinus infections caused by viruses are up to 200 times more common than those caused by bacteria. Nevertheless, the guidelines recommend treatment with amoxicillin or similar drugs for children with symptoms such as a runny nose and a cough that do not improve after 10 to 14 days. Garbutt said the findings suggest that doctors wait until symptoms have lasted at least three weeks before prescribing antibiotics. [This message has been edited by Mike NoLomotil (edited 04-04-2001).]


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