What makes an antibiotic effective for an infection?

Each antibiotic is effective only against certain bacteria. In selecting an antibiotic to treat a person with an infection, doctors estimate which bacteria are likely to be the cause. For example, some infections are caused only by certain types of bacteria.

Can you take antibiotics if you have a virus?

If a virus is causing the infection, taking antibiotics is useless and can contribute to the development of resistance in bacteria. For severe bacterial infections, antibiotics are usually first given by injection (usually into a vein but sometimes into a muscle). When the infection is controlled, antibiotics can then be taken by mouth.

What are the side effects of taking antibiotics?

Although doctors try to use antibiotics for specific bacterial infections, they sometimes start antibiotics without waiting for tests that identify the specific bacteria. Bacteria can develop resistance to the effects of antibiotics. Antibiotics can have side effects, such as upset stomach, diarrhea, and, in women, vaginal yeast infections.

Which is the best antibiotic for HIV / AIDS?

Cotrimoxazole, Trimethoprim/ sulfamethoxazole, TMP-SMX. Cotrimoxazole, a combination of 2 antibiotics, is inexpensive and fights a wide range of infections. It is an important medicine for people with HIV and can prevent the many infections that come as a result of infection with HIV.

What is the strongest antibiotic for bacterial infection?

Antibiotics are drugs that are used for treating bacterial infections. There is a list of antibiotics but Bactrim is one of the strongest antibiotic. It is a combination of two antibiotics, sulfamethoxazole and trimethoprim.

What do antibiotics kill bacteria?

Antibiotics can kill bacteria by interfering with their normal intracellular functions (RNA, DNA and protein synthesis) or by weakening the bacteria’s cellular structure, causing the cell to break open or lyse. Unlike animal cells, bacterial cells have both a plasma membrane and a stiff outer cell wall.

How can bacteria become resistant to antibiotics?

Bacteria become resistant to antibiotics by adapting their structure or function in some way as a defense mechanism. The antibiotic may have worked effectively before the resistance occurred; however, the change helps the bacteria to fend off the killing activity of the antibiotic.

Why are bacteria resistant to antibiotics?

Bacteria can develop resistance almost immediately to antibiotics — in no small part because most antibiotics already come from bacteria, which make their own to kill rival bacteria. So some bacteria already carried the genes they needed to resist antibiotics long before the drugs were ever invented.