Washington, March 19 (SANA) A recent scientific study found that the widespread and unjustified use of certain antibiotics during the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to accelerating bacterial resistance, without providing significant clinical benefits to patients.
According to research published in Nature Microbiology and highlighted by the scientific platform Medical Xpress, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco analyzed the use of the antibiotic azithromycin in COVID-19 patients.
The study found that azithromycin led to rapid changes in respiratory bacteria and increased the activity of antibiotic resistance genes, without improving patients’ health outcomes.
The findings indicated that about 75% of hospitalized patients received antibiotics at the beginning of the pandemic, despite most infections being viral in nature, reflecting widespread reliance on these medications amid limited treatment options at the time.
Researchers also found that azithromycin disrupted bacterial balance and increased the presence of harmful species, with effects on resistance genes persisting even after the treatment was discontinued.
The study underscores the importance of responsible antibiotic use, particularly in viral infections, to limit the development of bacterial resistance and preserve the effectiveness of these medications for future treatments.
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