Smokers More Likely To Receive Antibiotics For Persistent Coughs
Doctors are more likely to order antibiotics for coughing patients who smoke, but these antibiotics do not help smokers any more than non-smokers, a European study found.
People who smoke are more prone to contracting respiratory infections, and are more prone to catching pneumonia, Dr. Naomi Stanton of Cardiff University and her fellow researchers wrote.
However, it is unknown if constant coughs last longer in smokers, and there is no proof if smokers benefit from antibiotic treatment more.
Simultaneously, resistance to antibiotics has increased, mainly caused by antibiotic overuse.
The researchers reviewed 2,500 smokers in 13 countries who had coughs that spanned 28 days or and asked if their doctors were more likely to recommend antibiotics. Doctors gave antibiotic prescriptions to 60% of the smokers, 53% to non-smokers, and 51% to former smokers.
Smokers did not recuperate any quicker than those who did not receive antibiotics; there also was no change in the amount of recovery between smokers and non-smokers.
In every country reviewed, the researchers said, smokers generally received antibiotics for their coughs.
"This suggests that despite differences in training and practice setting, clinicians may have similar attitudes toward prescribing antibiotics for smokers," they wrote.
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