Thick question possibly...

but a while ago I got some antibiotics for my tooth when I was having root canal treatment but never used them.

Can you use them again for a sore throat or something or are they all different?

I think they are all different in that different ones are more effective for different things. I would not recommend taking them without seing the doc first.

Theres a whole raft of different antibiotics of different types and scopes (broad vs narrow spectrum). It's probably not a good idea to re-use the antibiotics for another problem without them being prescribed / recomended for it

If what you are asking is can you take antibiotics you have left from a previous problem for the sore throat you have now providing you had no ill effects when you took them before. take them antibiotics are antibiotics

If what you are asking is can you take antibiotics you have left from a previous problem for the sore throat you have now providing you had no ill effects when you took them before. take them antibiotics are antibiotics


Wrong! You really ought to change your name, you know.

If what you are asking is can you take antibiotics you have left from a previous problem for the sore throat you have now providing you had no ill effects when you took them before. take them antibiotics are antibiotics

Antibiotics are most certainly not all the same as you seem to imply. What is effective in one condition may not be effective or appropriate in another. Re-using antibiotics like this is a fine way of breeding new superbugs / increasing antibiotic tollerence in bacteria

Wrong! You really ought to change your name, you know.

why antibiotics are all the same basically dont listen to all the propoganda rubbish thats dished out in this instance she has been prescribed antibiotics by the doctor for one problem the same antibiotics will cure the sore throat it is as simple as that.
prove me wrong in simple terms please

why antibiotics are all the same basically dont listen to all the propoganda rubbish thats dished out in this instance she has been prescribed antibiotics by the doctor for one problem the same antibiotics will cure the sore throat it is as simple as that.
prove me wrong in simple terms please

Take a look here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antibiotic) for a list of some of the many types of antibiotics and their particular scope. Just as there are different classes of bacteria (eg gram positive or gram negative) so there are different antibiotics used to treat the infections caused by them.

Thick question possibly...

but a while ago I got some antibiotics for my tooth when I was having root canal treatment but never used them.

Can you use them again for a sore throat or something or are they all different?

Does it say what they contain? Penecillin? etc

i thought they listed the active ingredients on prescription medicine now too?

Different antibiotics treat different conditions.
For a given condition, there will be a small number of antibiotics that are ideal/almost ideal; there will be a few more that will work to some degree, i.e. will work slower, or will not completely eradicate an infection and some that will not work at all. There range of conditions to treat is very wide and anitbiotics reflect that.
All drugs have interactions with some other medicines and this also has to be taken into account - hence why your GP will always ask if you are taking other (not necessarily prescribed) medicines.

why antibiotics are all the same basically
On what grounds do you make that claim?

dont listen to all the propoganda rubbish thats dished out in this instance she has been prescribed antibiotics by the doctor for one problem the same antibiotics will cure the sore throat it is as simple as that.
Why, because you say so?

prove me wrong in simple terms please
The burden of proof is actually on you to prove that you're right but just to make sure Clare85 realises just how full of crap you are and doesn't take your advice, if 'antibiotics are all the same basically' how do you explain this table on antibiotics (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antibiotics#Classes_of_antibiotics) and the infections they are used to treat which would suggest that there are significant differences between them.

why antibiotics are all the same basically dont listen to all the propoganda rubbish thats dished out in this instance she has been prescribed antibiotics by the doctor for one problem the same antibiotics will cure the sore throat it is as simple as that.
prove me wrong in simple terms please

Its so funny to see someone so sure of themselves when they are so wrong - and with such a username LOL!
Anyway - after several years spent studying biomed sciences and a career in the health services, please let me assure you that you really are wrong this time. Not any antibiotic will cure any sore throat! Antibiotics have very different modes of action, they target different things.
I'll give you one very very simple example (and apologies to the science peeps - but I am going to generalise MASSIVELY here because he did ask for it be kept simple..okay?).
Bacteria can be classified as Gram positive, or Gram negative, due to different types of cell wall. Some antibiotics target Gram postivie bacteria specifically by way of certain molecules which are present. These molecules are not present in Gram negative bacteria. If you give the antibiotic for G+ bacteria when in fact you have a G- infection, it will do absolutely bugger all (technical term).
Its a bit like giving someone a phillips head screwdriver when the screw is suitable for a flat head screwdriver - yeah its a screwdriver but its fairly useless.

Hope that goes some way to explaining.

also, if your sore throat is the result of a viral infection rather than bacterial antibiotics wont do diddly squat anyway. If its bad enough to require treating best popping to the doctors for a proper diagnosis and treatment.
hope you feel better soon!

Take a look here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antibiotic) for a list of some of the many types of antibiotics and their particular scope. Just as there are different classes of bacteria (eg gram positive or gram negative) so there are different antibiotics used to treat the infections caused by them.

I agree with what you say but quite honestly in this instance and only this instance no harm will be done. at the end of the day she had a packet of prescribed antibiotics that could be used to cure a sore throat the doctor would not have prescribed if they were dangerous ie. penecillin allergic to I answered the question that was asked IMO

Its so funny to see someone so sure of themselves when they are so wrong - and with such a username LOL!
Anyway - after several years spent studying biomed sciences and a career in the health services, please let me assure you that you really are wrong this time. Not any antibiotic will cure any sore throat! Antibiotics have very different modes of action, they target different things.
I'll give you one very very simple example (and apologies to the science peeps - but I am going to generalise MASSIVELY here because he did ask for it be kept simple..okay?).
Bacteria can be classified as Gram positive, or Gram negative, due to different types of cell wall. Some antibiotics target Gram postivie bacteria specifically by way of certain molecules which are present. These molecules are not present in Gram negative bacteria. If you give the antibiotic for G+ bacteria when in fact you have a G- infection, it will do absolutely bugger all (technical term).
Its a bit like giving someone a phillips head screwdriver when the screw is suitable for a flat head screwdriver - yeah its a screwdriver but its fairly useless.

Hope that goes some way to explaining.

christ!!!! all this for a sore throat. and if it does bugger all no harm done its common sense not rocket sceince

christ!!!! all this for a sore throat. and if it does bugger all no harm done its common sense not rocket sceince

Again .... Wrong!!


Not only will it do bugger all towards curing the sore throat, it's actually possible (unlikely, but nevertheless possible) that by taking the wrong antibiotics, you will cause the bacteria to mutate into something even more dangerous.

christ!!!! all this for a sore throat. and if it does bugger all no harm done its common sense not rocket sceince

And this is before we consider the fact that over 90% of sore throats are caused by a virus which will be totally unaffected by antibiotics at all.

I agree with what you say but quite honestly in this instance and only this instance no harm will be done. at the end of the day she had a packet of prescribed antibiotics that could be used to cure a sore throat the doctor would not have prescribed if they were dangerous ie. penecillin allergic to I answered the question that was asked IMO

Sorry! Me again! Just wanted to tell you about the problems with taking too many antibiotics when you don't have to - just so you are a bit better informed :-)

Going to do another example here. Remember that lengths of treatment with antibiotics depends on the infection - some things take a week, some things require 3 weeks of treatment!

Say that unbeknown to her, she had 100 or so bacteria lingering around in her guts, the sort which cause nasty problems. Maybe they would have just given a mild tummy upset, or her immune system would have taken care of them on its own - nothing serious going on. But then she took the antibiotic, and of those 100, the weakest ones died off first. She kept taking it, and more died off. She stops taking it! This is the sort of bacteria which requires a month of treatment if you get a bad infection, so they aren't all dead. And all you have left are the strongest ones, who happily grow and divide and multiply now - lots and lots of the best "SAS-style" bacteria who make her very poorly indeed.

This is how superbugs are made. This is why all packets of antibiotics tell you to take the WHOLE course of treatment, and this is why doctors don't like to over-prescribe them, or give them when its probably viral anyway.

Hope that helps :-)

christ!!!! all this for a sore throat. and if it does bugger all no harm done its common sense not rocket sceince

Have tried to explain above! Hope it helps!

Hope you also notice that I am attempting to explain why you are wrong and not resorting to any form of abuse as others might LOL!

I do hope you have the similarly good grace to admit that you don't really know what you're talking about.

Its a bit like giving someone a phillips head screwdriver when the screw is suitable for a flat head screwdriver - yeah its a screwdriver but its fairly useless.

That is just soooo funny:D:thumbsup:

BTW Clare- I'm assuming that for your tooth you were given metronidazole?

If you were to be given anything for a throat infection, it would be something effective against a wide spectrum of aerobic bacteria- whereas metronidazole is very effective, but only against anaerobic bacteria.

No use to your throat whatsoever- sorry.

quote from previous post not by me

the antibiotic for G+ bacteria when in fact you have a G- infection, it will do absolutely bugger all (technical term).


See I never said that someone else did I could have said get some mouldy jelly to cure your sore throat as was implied in a previous posted on SF.
You are blowing this up out of propotion
sore throat /got tablets /take them./result relief/no relief/ start again you are not honestly saying any harm would be done. In fact on the balance of probabilites it would give a cure

LAST MESSAGE from me on this subject

quote from previous post not by me

the antibiotic for G+ bacteria when in fact you have a G- infection, it will do absolutely bugger all (technical term).


See I never said that someone else did I could have said get some mouldy jelly to cure your sore throat as was implied in a previous posted on SF.
You are blowing this up out of propotion
sore throat /got tablets /take them./result relief/no relief/ start again you are not honestly saying any harm would be done. In fact on the balance of probabilites it would give a cure


Did you even read my post about creating other problems and causing more resilient bacteria to grow and multiply?

I see where you are coming from - no, it probably wouldnt kill her (although its also unlikely to give a cure) but taking any old antibiotic for anything really does cause problems with resistance. Which in turn causes bigger problems if you really do need to treat something later on.

I have a friend currently in Intensive Care in Rotherham with a hospital-acquired infection. It won't respond to antibiotics because they are resistant. It is a very real problem. MRSA will have arisen in similar circumstances. We need to be less blase about these things. If she passed on any resistant bugs to someone old/young it could be potentially very serious, and she'd never know.

see?

never wrong misuse of antibiotics in the way you are suggesting does a great deal of harm as it speeds the development of antibiotic resistant bacteria which are increasingly putting peoples health at risk. Do you really not understand why people who unlike you actually know what they are talking about might be concerned about this?

sore throat /got tablets /take them./result relief/no relief/ start again you are not honestly saying any harm would be done. In fact on the balance of probabilites it would give a cure

Given that the anitibiotics were prescribed after root canal work the balance of probablities is it wouldn't cure a sore throat (even if it is a bacterial sore throat). And as pointed out numerous times yes harm CAN be done by taking innapropriate / unwarented antibiotics - can you say MRSA?

LAST MESSAGE from me on this subject

Awww we were having a good laugh (though along with a slight cringe) at this wonderfull display of ignorance!

Hi peeps

'Sore throat' was just an example because i had this wandering idea antibiotics may be the same as all painkillers (except strength wise) but from looking at some of those links I think I'll go to the chemist/docs!!!

Thanks xx

Hi peeps

'Sore throat' was just an example because i had this wandering idea antibiotics may be the same as all painkillers (except strength wise) but from looking at some of those links I think I'll go to the chemist/docs!!!

Thanks xx

Hi Clare!

Sorry to hijack your thread and turn it into a public health education class LOL! Good idea to go to the docs I think!

(and all painkillers aren't the same either...but I'm not even going to start on that one :suspect: :hihi: :hihi: :hihi: )

why antibiotics are all the same basically dont listen to all the propoganda rubbish thats dished out in this instance she has been prescribed antibiotics by the doctor for one problem the same antibiotics will cure the sore throat it is as simple as that.
prove me wrong in simple terms please

Very wrong. And it's potentially dangerous advice as well.

Assuming it's a bacterial infection causing the throat problem, the bug concerned may not resond to the antibiotics given for another problem.

If the throat bacteria were resistant to the antibiotic being given for another problem, the effect on the throat bacteria will be the same as sucking a smartie.

Don't self-mediacte with anti-biotics unless there's a damn good reason - like no medical advice available for a considerable time - and CERTAINLY don't self-medicate with antibiotics for a sore throat. If it's bad enough to require medical attention, get the diagnosis done first and then take the advice given.

Hi peeps

'Sore throat' was just an example because i had this wandering idea antibiotics may be the same as all painkillers (except strength wise) but from looking at some of those links I think I'll go to the chemist/docs!!!

Thanks xx

No, not at all. Whether antibiotics work on particular bacteria or not depends upon the type of bacteria, whether they have acquired resistance to the drugs, etc.

A very complicated business; best advice is take the antibiotics given for a particular illness as directed, take them all, and don't stop taking them because you think you're cured. If you DO have any left for any reason, take them back to the pharmacy. But seriously, if you are presecribed them, take teh full course.