This habit is very harmful. Are anti-inflammatory drugs antibiotics? Take anti-inflammatory drugs when symptoms of respiratory disease occur
Respiratory diseases are more common in autumn and winter, and multiple diseases are intertwined. Many people suffer from fever, cough, runny nose, headache, sore throat and other symptoms. As soon as symptoms appear, the first reaction of many patients is to take "anti-inflammatory drugs." However, patients often do not know the difference between anti-inflammatory drugs and antibiotics and take them by themselves, causing health risks. In fact, the anti-inflammatory drugs and antibiotics in people's mouth are not the same type of drugs. Zhu Linjun, deputy chief physician of the Department of Respiratory Medicine at Shanghai Putuo District Central Hospital, reminds you not to take "anti-inflammatory drugs" without authorization.
To understand what anti-inflammatory drugs are, we must first know what “inflammation” is. Inflammation is an immune physiological response produced by the human body in response to external stimulation or physical injury. It is manifested as "redness, swelling, heat and pain" and is often accompanied by increased body temperature, increased white blood cells, and dysfunction. At this time, the brain mobilizes the body's immune mechanism to respond to these invasions and injuries, thereby triggering inflammation.
Inflammation can be caused by infectious and non-infectious factors. Infectious factors include infections caused by bacteria, fungi, viruses, etc., which are the most common causes of inflammation; non-infectious factors include physical factors, chemical factors, immune reactivity factors, etc. Simply put, infection is one of the factors that triggers inflammation.
The main function of anti-inflammatory drugs is to relieve inflammation. Anti-inflammatory drugs can suppress various inflammatory substances produced by the body's immune system and reduce or eliminate the symptoms of redness, swelling, heat and pain, but they have no direct effect on the various causes of symptoms and cannot kill pathogenic microorganisms.
In medicine, anti-inflammatory drugs mainly include two categories: nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs mainly include: aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, etc., which have anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antipyretic and other effects. They are mostly used for non-infectious inflammation, such as headaches, arthritis, muscle sprains, etc. It is one of the most commonly used anti-inflammatory drugs in clinical practice. Although some non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are over-the-counter, they should not be used excessively, otherwise they may cause adverse reactions. When the dosage exceeds a certain level, not only will the efficacy of the drug fail to be enhanced, but adverse reactions will increase significantly.
Steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs mainly include: prednisone, hydrocortisone, dexamethasone, etc., which are mainly used for allergic and immune diseases. This type of drug is a hormonal drug that may mask certain symptoms of the body and affect the doctor's judgment of the disease, so it must be used with caution and in compliance with the doctor's advice.
Antibiotics refer to substances produced by microorganisms that can kill or inhibit other microorganisms. Therefore, antibiotics are often mistaken for "anti-inflammatory drugs." But in fact, antibiotics are not anti-inflammatory drugs, because antibiotics do not target inflammation itself, but target the pathogenic bacteria that cause inflammation. The use of antibiotics can kill or inhibit pathogens. Because the pathogens are inhibited or eliminated, the inflammatory response is reduced, so it has an indirect anti-inflammatory effect.
Antibiotics can only be used for inflammation caused by infections caused by bacteria and some other microorganisms, but are completely ineffective against inflammation caused by infections such as viruses and fungi. For example, common pharyngitis, colds, etc. are mostly caused by viruses, and antibiotics are completely ineffective.
Zhu Linjun emphasized that after an infection occurs, some patients will take antibiotics on their own, which is not advisable. It should be noted that overuse of antibiotics may promote the development of super-resistant bacteria, leading to difficult-to-treat infections in immunocompromised patients and ultimately life-threatening infections. If an inflammatory reaction occurs, you should seek medical treatment in time to determine the cause and then carry out targeted treatment. You must not abuse antibiotics.
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