Month: January 2013

With reminders, doctors may prescribe fewer antibiotics for bronchitis, a study finds. Antibiotics kill bacteria. They won’t help bronchitis, which is caused by a virus. But doctors prescribe antibiotics for 70% of U.S. patients with bronchitis. The new study included 33 medical offices. They were randomly divided into 3 groups. One group received posters that pointed out when antibiotics should and should not be used. The second group received advice through the office’s electronic records system. The third group did not get either form of decision support. The study lasted 6 months, October through March. Researchers kept track of antibiotic prescriptions for bronchitis during the study period. They compared this to the same period in the last 3 years. In the offices that got the posters, prescriptions dropped from 80% of bronchitis cases to 60.7%.

Early treatment for HIV infection strengthens the immune system better than waiting, a new study suggests. Researchers looked at records for 468 adults with HIV infection. Levels of CD4 cells, a key part of the immune system, rose during the first 4 months of the estimated date of infection. Then they began to drop as the infection killed the cells. People started taking medicines, called antiretroviral therapy (ART), at different times. CD4 cell counts recovered in 64% of those who started ART within 4 months of infection and 34% of those who started later. The New England Journal of Medicine published the study. HealthDay News wrote about it January 16.

A cough from a head or chest cold is likely to last longer than you think, a new study finds. That means you usually don’t need antibiotics for a lingering cough, researchers said. The study included nearly 500 adults. As part of a poll, they were asked how long they expected a cough to last. People estimated about 7 to 9 days. Researchers compared these answers with the results of 19 studies on treatment of coughs. The studies showed that, on average, an untreated cough lasts about 18 days — twice as long as people who were polled thought. Researchers said people who think their cough should be gone quickly are more likely to ask for an antibiotic when it hangs on longer. But most coughs are caused by viruses. Antibiotics don’t treat viral infections. They only treat infections caused by bacteria.