Using antibiotics without a prescription is a prevalent public health problem

在没有医嘱的情况下使用抗生素已经为普遍存在的全民健康问题

上海译锐翻译   2019-7-24      13:31

People using antibiotics without a prescription seems to be a prevalent public health problem. Antibiotics were obtained through various means, including saving leftover prescriptions for later use, getting them from friends and family, or obtaining them from local markets "under the counter." Findings from a scoping review are published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

在没有医嘱的情况下使用抗生素似乎已经成为一个普遍存在的全民健康问题。人们获取抗生素的方式多种多样，包括将医生所开具的、未服用完的药物保留起来以便日后服用，从朋友和家人那里获取，或从当地市场私下购买。范围综述的结论被刊登在《内科医学志》上。

under the counter：（私下）交易

scoping review ：范围综述

When people take antibiotics without a prescription, they often take unnecessary medication or choose an inappropriate drug or dose. This practice is associated with avoidable adverse events and may also increase the risk for inducing antibiotic resistance. It is important to understand how prevalent nonprescription antibiotic use is and the factors that contribute to the issue.

当人们在没有医嘱的情况下服用抗生素时，他们通常会服用不必要的药物或选择不恰当的药物或剂量。这一做法可以避免不良反应，同时也会增加耐药性的风险。理解未经医嘱服用抗生素的普遍性以及导致这一问题的因素具有重要意义。

antibiotic resistance：耐药性

adverse event：不良反应

Researchers from Baylor College of Medicine and the Center for Innovations in Quality, Effectiveness, and Safety reviewed 31 published studies to determine the prevalence of nonprescription antibiotic use in the U.S. and to examine the factors that influence that use. The prevalence of nonprescription antibiotic use varied from 1 percent among people visiting a clinic to 66 percent among Latino migrant workers. Storage of antibiotics for future use varied from 14 percent to 48 percent and a quarter of the people in one study reported intention to use antibiotics without a prescription.

来自贝勒医学院和品质、效果和安全创新中心的研究人员们评估了31个已发表的研究，以测定非经医嘱服用抗生素在美国的普遍性并检查影响这一使用的因素。未经医嘱使用抗生素的普遍性从1%到66%不等。其中，1%来自于前往诊所看病的人群，而66%来自于拉丁美洲裔外来务工者。将抗生素储存起来以备日后使用的比例从14%到48%不等。在某一个研究中，有四分之一的人群表示其有意在未经医嘱的情况下使用抗生素。

Factors that contribute to nonprescription use include lack of insurance or health care access, cost of a physician visit or prescription, embarrassment about seeking care for a sexually transmitted infection, not being able to get time off of work to visit a clinic or physician's office, and several other reasons. According to the researchers, more studies are needed to quantitate nonprescription antibiotic use and explore potentially modifiable factors that contribute to unsafe practices.

导致未经医嘱而直接使用抗生素的因素包括没有保险或缺乏医疗途径、看医生或开药费用太贵，因传染性病而羞于看病，没时间请假去看病或看医生以及其他若干原因。根据研究人员的介绍，更多的研究需要对未经医嘱使用抗生素进行量化并探索导致这一危险做法的潜在可变因素。

文章来源：科学日报         编辑：Susan