Parents Unnecessarily Request Antibiotics

For Release: June 2, 1997 5 p.m. (ET)

Below is a highlight of a study appearing on the June PEDIATRICS electronic pages, the Internet extension of Pediatrics, the peer-reviewed, scientific journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). To receive the full text of this study and interview contact information, please contact the AAP Division of Public Relations at 847-981-7877 and ask for CE6. The complete study is also available on PEDIATRICS electronic pages at http://www.pediatrics.org.

PARENTS UNNECESSARILY REQUEST ANTIBIOTICS DESPITE CONCERNS ABOUT RESISTANCE

CHICAGO--Despite a growing concern over "antibiotic resistance," parents still request that pediatricians unnecessarily prescribe antibiotics for their children, a new study reports. The study, published by the American Academy of Pediatrics on Pediatrics electronic pages, also says parents give their children antibiotics without seeking physician advice. Researchers from Boston Medical Center, Boston, surveyed 400 parents and 61 pediatricians and found 18 percent of parents give their children antibiotics without consulting a physician. Nine out of 10 thought antibiotics were needed for ear infections, eight out of 10 thought antibiotics were needed for throat infections, and six out of 10 thought antibiotics were needed for cough and fever. "Growing bacterial resistance to antibiotics represents a global threat to the health of the worlds population," the authors state. "If parents can better understand the role of antibiotics in the treatment of disease, they may exert less pressure on physicians to dispense antibiotics inappropriately."

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EDITORS NOTE: This study appears on the peer-reviewed, scientific electronic pages of the American Academy of Pediatrics, but does not necessarily reflect the policies or opinions of the Academy. The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 53,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.