What antibiotic to give the child? This is a common question. Let's look into it in more detail.
In the process of growth, a fragile child's body is often exposed to a variety of pathogens that can cause various inflammatory and infectious diseases. Such diseases are treated with antibacterial drugs that inhibit the growth and active reproduction of microbes.
According to official statistics, it is necessary to use antibiotics for children of all ages, starting from birth, otherwise complications develop that can cause serious harm to the child's he alth, and sometimes even cause death.
However, only a doctor who knows a competent approach to the treatment of infectious diseases and can choose the safest and most effective treatment option should prescribe such drugs to children. The following aspects of the use and purpose of data are taken into accountMedicines:
- Antimicrobial and antibacterial drugs are prescribed only by specialists based on the clinical manifestations of a particular disease and the results of diagnostic tests.
- Adults control the intake of medicines by a child in accordance with the doctor's recommendations.
The above points will help minimize adverse reactions from the use of medicines on the body, which parents are very concerned about, and will speed up the recovery of the child as much as possible.
What kind of antibiotics are there for children?
Types of antibiotics
On the modern pharmacological market, the list of the most famous antibiotics contains more than ten thousand items, and about five percent of them are actively used to combat pathogenic microflora.
The systematization of such a volume of medicines is carried out according to a number of criteria, including the generation of the drug, its pharmaceutical effect on the infectious agent and composition.
One of these classifications provides for the division of antibiotics for children according to the spectrum of effects on different types of infectious agents:
- Anticoccal, which inhibit the growth of colonies and destroy representatives of the genus Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Clostridia. These are substances such as macrolides, lincomycin, cephalosporins.
- Antituberculous antibacterial substances - streptomycin, rifampicin.
- Antifungal drugs – Ketoconazole, Diflucan.
- Substances that counteract Gram-negativesticks - cephalosporins, polymyxins.
- Drugs with a broad spectrum of effects on infection - amoxicillins, aminoglycosides.
Which antibiotic should I give my baby?
Indications for use
It should be borne in mind that most pathologies, accompanied by the release of a large amount of mucus from the nose, cough, fever, do not always require the use of antibacterial agents, since the development of acute respiratory infections and acute respiratory viral infections occurs under the influence of viruses that are not susceptible to such drugs. If after five days of illness, instead of recovery, the condition worsens, this means that some bacterial infections have joined the causative agents of the respiratory disease. In this case, the use of narrowly targeted drugs and antibiotics for children is considered quite reasonable.
The following diseases in children are treated with pathogen-destroying drugs:
- bronchitis;
- pneumonia;
- acute sinusitis, accompanied by the formation of pus in the frontal or nasal sinuses;
- otitis media;
- cystitis;
- paratonsillitis;
- furunculosis;
- pyelonephritis;
- urethritis and others.
As a rule, when the temperature rises, when the disease is not accompanied by other symptoms, antibacterial agents are not prescribed until the diagnosis of the child is established with certainty.
In cases where a child is admitted to a medical institution in serious condition, specialists includetherapy with antibacterial drugs immediately, the correction of such treatment occurs after receiving the results of laboratory tests.
So let's take a look at the best antibiotics for kids.
Antibiotics to treat a child
When choosing a medication, the doctor takes into account the patient's well-being, weight and age, since all drugs are prescribed, as a rule, taking into account these parameters (for example, the tetracycline group is activated only when the child reaches the age of eight). What antibiotics should children take?
Often the prescribed list of antibiotics for the treatment of children includes, as a rule, the following medicines:
- "Augmentin", which is a modern combined drug to eliminate the symptoms of bacterial diseases. It can provoke the development of allergic reactions in the child's body and should not be used to treat newborns and patients under three months of age. The active ingredients in this drug are amoxicillin and clavulanic acid.
- "Zinnat" - a product that is available in the form of granules for the preparation of suspensions for children and tablets. The solution is widely used in pediatric therapy for children from 3 months, and tablets are used from the age of three. The list of antibiotics for children does not end here.
- "Amoxicillin" is an antibacterial drug that is characterized by a wide range of effects. Use it more oftenonly with pneumonia, sinusitis, cystitis, otitis media and pharyngitis, as well as with complicated sore throat.
- "Zinacef" - a drug for the treatment of severe stages of diseases. This medication is produced only in the form of a powder for infusions and injections and is administered under the supervision of a specialist.
- "Sumamed" is a group of macrolides, and is produced in the form of powders and tablets. An antibacterial suspension is used from the age of six months, and the medicine in tablet form is used for children from 12 years of age. Helps to eliminate such pathologies as urethritis, pharyngitis, Lyme disease, infectious diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, etc.
Benefits of Medicated Suspensions
Drugs in powders, which are intended for the manufacture of a special suspension, have a milder effect on the child's body, as well as good absorption and the absence of the bulk of side effects.
Prescription of such drugs for infants occurs mainly in cases where severe forms of any disease are observed.
Categorically it is impossible to change the dosage of drugs in case of improvement in the general well-being of the child. Cancel the use of the suspension, replace the drug can only be a pediatrician.
Antibiotics are usually administered orally, and the dose is calculated based on the baby's weight. The pleasant fruity taste and smell of the drug greatly facilitates the process of treatment and taking it by the child. Usually the reception of suchmedication lasts no more than seven days.
Antibiotics for various diseases
In most cases, when infectious pathologies occur in children, specialists prescribe standard treatment regimens, however, the choice of medications should be carried out according to the individual characteristics of each patient. The absence or presence of allergies to certain medicinal substances, as well as past pathologies are also taken into account.
To help with the occurrence of angina in children, macrolides are used, for example, Sumamed or Klacid in the form of suspensions, or the drug Zinnat in syrup. With the development of purulent forms of tonsillitis, injections of the drug "Ceftriaxone" are used.
Suprax, Flemoxin Solutab, and Fluimucil suspensions for children are very successfully fighting bronchitis, which not only destroy pathogenic microflora, but also stimulate the functions of the respiratory tract.
Colds complicated by infections are cured by medicines such as Augmentin, Sumamed, Macropen and Zinnat.
What antibiotics to drink for children, the doctor should tell.
Pros and cons of antibiotic therapy
The use of antibacterial agents in the treatment has many pros and cons. The rapid elimination of various kinds of pathological conditions in children with the help of antibiotics is very often accompanied by the development of some disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, the occurrence of symptoms of microflora changes against the background of a decrease in immunity, as well as a variety of allergic reactions.
With a viewto reduce the negative impact of drugs on the intestinal flora, specialized infant formulas are additionally prescribed, which contain beneficial microorganisms. It is also necessary to monitor the child's diet and include fermented milk products in it. A specialist can prescribe probiotics, which actively restore the disturbed balance of beneficial microorganisms in the intestines.
Undoubtedly, antibacterial agents help protect the child from a number of diseases, but it should be remembered that the uncontrolled use of such medications leads to a decrease in immunity and the emergence of resistance to such drugs in pathogenic microorganisms.
Before using antibiotics for children, the instructions should be carefully studied.
Antibiotics for runny nose and cough
Before you start giving your child an antibiotic, you need to make sure that the pathological symptoms are caused by a bacterial infection. Runny nose and cough are observed, as a rule, with the following diseases:
- bacterial bronchitis;
- tuberculosis;
- pneumonia;
- pleurisy;
- angina;
- respiratory tract infection with chlamydia or mycoplasmas;
- purulent tracheitis.
To find out which antibiotics to give a child when coughing, it would be a reasonable act to take sputum for research, which will help determine the pathogen and choose a medicine. However, in some severe cases of the disease there is no time for suchactivities, and then prescribed antibacterial drugs with a broad spectrum of effects on bacteria. Thus, the following medications can be prescribed for cough and runny nose:
- Penicillins - Amoxicillin, Ospamox, Amoxiclav, Augmentin, Flemoxin Solutab.
- Cephalosporins, which are prescribed in cases where penicillins did not help the child - Cefixime, Suprax, Cefuroxime, Cefotaxime.
- Macrolides - Sumamed, Macropen, Rulid, Clarithromycin, Azithromycin, Klacid, Azithromycin.
- Topical antibiotics - Neomycin, Isofra, Bioparox, Framycetin, Novoimanin.
Which antibiotic is better to give a child with a temperature?
Antibiotics for high fever
An increase in temperature in children in most cases is observed when a variety of viral infections occur, and antibacterial drugs for ARVI do not give the desired effect, since they only act on bacteria.
The main signs that indicate that the temperature has risen due to the development of a bacterial disease are the following:
- Cases when a child has been ill with a catarrhal pathology, however, after recovery, the symptoms of such an ailment arose again.
- High fever (over 38 degrees) lasts for more than three days, and antiviral and antipyretic drugs do not have the desired effect.
- At first, the child may get sickthroat, then there is a runny nose, and only after that there is an increase in temperature.
- When symptoms come on slowly and gradually, the infection is most likely bacterial rather than viral.
The most popular antibiotics for children at a temperature are Ampicillin, Amoxicillin, Ceftriaxone, Klacid, Suprax, Augmentin, Sumamed, Flemoxin Solutab, Cefix, "Flemoklav", "Cefazolin Solutab", "Azithromycin", "Cefotaxime", "Clarithromycin". If you have an allergic reaction to any remedy, you should immediately consult a doctor.
Antibiotics for children with fever are prescribed with great care.
Antibacterial drugs for newborns
The younger the child, the stricter the indications for prescribing antibacterial drugs. At the same time, the doctor is obliged to make sure that the infection is really bacterial, and only then one or another remedy should be prescribed. It is not recommended to start such therapy from the first days of the disease, since the body should have a chance to fight the disease on its own.
As a rule, this kind of drugs are prescribed to newborns on the third day, if treatment with other medicines has not given positive results. Exceptions are situations in which antibiotic therapy must be started immediately, for example, with meningococcal infection, pneumonia, purulent tonsillitis. It is preferable for infants to prescribe antibiotics in the form of a suspension.
What antibiotics should I give children for sore throats?
From birth, you can use the following antibiotics: Tavanic, Cifran, Zinnat, Tsiprolet, Doxycycline, Flemoxin Solutab, Amoxicillin, Ampicillin, Cefuroxime, Zinacef, Augmentin, Cefuroxime.
The safest antibiotics
Prescribing antibacterial drugs in childhood is highly undesirable, especially aminoglycosides, since these medications often cause complications in the hearing aid, kidneys and other organs. Tetracyclines, which seriously affect bone and cartilage tissue, are also not recommended. Antibiotics, with a relatively small number of side effects, are: Amoxiclav, Amoxicillin, Flemoxin Solutab, Ampicillin, Oxacillin, Aksetin, Zinacef, Zinnat, Cefilim, Cefalexin”, “Cefexim”, “Sumamed”, “Azithromycin”, “Hemomycin”, “Clarithromycin”, “Erythromycin”, “Ciprofloxacin”, “Moximac”, “Moxifloxacin”, “Levofloxacin”, “Avelox”.
These are broad spectrum antibiotics for children.
Reviews
Because young children often suffer from a variety of infectious diseases, there are a lot of reviews of antibiotics for use in children, both positive and negative. Parents note that any of these medications very often cause a number of unpleasant side effects in a child that require additional therapy, for example, dysbacteriosis and allergic reactions to drug components, including dyes and fruit flavors.
Despite this, the useantibacterial medicines - a necessary measure in the event of some acute pathologies of an inflammatory and infectious nature, since with some ailments it is impossible to cope without them.
There are a lot of positive reviews about antibiotics for children. For example, people praise "Sumamed", which is most often prescribed for bronchitis, tonsillitis, cystitis; "Amoxiclav", which has a mild effect on the children's body; "Cefotaxime", which helps fight more complex diseases, such as pneumonia. Parents claim that such drugs easily relieve pathological conditions and act very quickly, effectively relieve the symptoms of hyperthermia, and also help a lot in the event of a variety of purulent pathologies in children. Side effects from them are also available, but they are expressed, most often, slightly.
Negative reviews of antibiotics for children are also collected. They, for example, deserved "Clarithromycin", "Doxycycline", "Erythromycin" and some others. At the same time, parents note that these medications cause strong side effects, which, after the underlying disease, are difficult to treat, and in some cases it was noticed that these drugs did not help cure a particular disease. Parents have noticed in their children the development of acute diarrhea due to an imbalance in the intestinal microflora, signs of thrush on the oral mucosa and many other side effects.
