The 9 most used antibiotics (and what they are for)

There are numerous diseases that need to be treated through the administration of antibiotics, being specifically useful for those that are caused by an infection caused by some bacteria, having demonstrated a great efficiency. It should also be borne in mind that they are not exempt from causing possible side effects.

However, today there are many people who self-medicate with antibiotics without taking into account that they can be dangerous if they are not prescribed by a doctor. In addition, they are often used erroneously to treat diseases caused by a virus, when in reality they are not effective against diseases of the viral class.

In this article we will see which are the most used antibiotics and what are they prescribed by some professionals for.

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What are antibiotics?

An antibiotic is a medicine that has been developed in order to be able to fight bacterial infections in both people and animals, whose origin dates back to the year 1928, when Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, being the first antibiotic that is composed of fungi and that has been shown to be effective in combating bacteria

In addition to having antibiotics formed by fungi, such as penicillin, there are also other classes of antibiotics that have been developed with synthetic compounds in a laboratory, whose usefulness is to also fight against bacteria, either killing them directly or inhibiting their increase.

Antibiotics are a group of drugs that can be administered in a variety of ways:

• Oral route: it can be ingested through capsules, pills or liquid.
• Topical drug: being applied through a cream on the skin or also by an ointment or drops on the eyes.
• Intravenous: through an injection.

On the other hand, the different types of antibiotics out there have been developed in order to treat different kinds of bacterial infections. Some types of antibiotics are very specific for one class of bacteria, and others are effective for several species of bacteria. This is why so many types of antibiotics have been developed to cover various bacterial "niches".

How do these medications work?

The antibiotics are used to fight against certain bacteria that have caused an infection in the body (p. g., in the gastrointestinal tract, in the urinary tract, in the skin, in the bones, etc.). To fight against these harmful bacteria they use various mechanisms.

One of them is causing damage to the cell wall that surrounds these bacteria, so that the bacteria end up weakening and, finally, they die.

Other antibiotics act directly on the cell membrane, so that the bacteria are completely unprotected and end up dying.

There are also antibiotics that are responsible for inhibiting protein synthesis, others that attack the genetic material of the bacteria, etc. The common goal is to directly kill the bacteria or prevent them from growing and reproducing, so that they too end up dying..

The most commonly used antibiotics within the health system to treat various bacterial diseases will be briefly explained below.

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What are the most commonly used antibiotics?

Let's see how they work and for which diseases the following antibiotics that are explained in this section are used.

1. Penicillin

As discussed earlier, it was the first of all antibiotics to be discovered. It is a bactericide whose objective is to block the synthesis and repair of the bacterial wall, so that is considered a broad spectrum antibiotic.

This antibiotic mainly fights against gonococci, pneumococci, streptococci, spirochetes and staphylococci.

It is used to treat various diseases: meningitis, syphilis, tetanus, gonorrhea, pneumonia, pharyngitis, otitis, tonsillitis, sinusitis, osteomyelitis, septicemia, diphtheria, among others.

2. Amoxicillin

Amoxicillin is one of the most widely used antibiotics. It is responsible for killing bacteria, and its way of acting is by inhibiting the synthesis and also the repair of the bacterial wall, being also a broad spectrum antibiotic.

Amoxicillin works in a way that not only inhibits the growth of bacteria, but is capable of killing them directly.

This antibiotic is used with diseases such as the following: infections in the throat, in the respiratory system, in the ear, in the urinary system, in the mouth, on the skin, in the stomach, etc.

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3. Ampicillin

Ampicillin is an antibiotic that has a mechanism of action against bacteria similar to that of amoxicillin, preventing synthesis in the bacterial wall and killing infectious bacteria, being also a broad spectrum antibiotic.

It is one of the antibiotics used to treat respiratory, ear, skin, neurological, urinary system, septicemia and gastrointestinal infections.

4. Streptomycin

The goal of this bactericidal antibiotic is to damage ribosomes, structures that are found inside cells and that help in the process of making proteins in the body.

So when this antibiotic enters the body, the proteins that are essential for the bacteria to be fought are not synthesized, therefore, by not synthesizing the proteins, it is possible to kill the bacteria.

The diseases for which this antibiotic is prescribed are the following: gonorrhea, gastrointestinal infections, tuberculosis, brucellosis, etc.; being also used with the aim of reducing the intestinal flora in patients who are going to undergo surgery.

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5. Tetracycline

It is a bacteriostatic antibiotic, so it is not in charge of killing bacteria as bactericides do, but is only in charge of inhibiting their growth. Its way of acting in the body is by interfering with the synthesis of proteins, so that they Bacteria cannot reproduce or grow, until a time comes when they finish dying.

This type of antibiotics are used to fight bacteria such as the following: "Listeria", "Streptococcus", "Bacillus", "Staphylococcus", among others.

The diseases they serve are respiratory, dental, skin, gastrointestinal infections, otitis, typhus, etc.

6. Ticarcillin

It is also a bactericidal antibiotic that is responsible for inhibiting the synthesis and also the repair of the cell wall, so that for this reason the bacteria end up dying.

This antibiotic acts against bacteria such as the following: "Proteus", "Pseudomonas", "Salmonella", "Klebsiella", etc.

The diseases treated with ticarcillin are gastrointestinal, urinary and respiratory diseases caused by bacterial infections.

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7. Piperacillin

It is a bactericidal antibiotic whose purpose is to inhibit the synthesis of the components of the bacterial cell wall, so that the bacteria die.

This antibiotic is used to fight infections suffered by neutropenic people, which means they have fewer immune cells than usual. Likewise, it is frequently administered to the elderly.

This antibiotic is used for the following diseases: kidney, skin, reproductive and urinary tract infections, septicemia, pneumonia, among others.

8. Oxacillin

Of a bactericidal type, oxacillin is one of the most widely used antibiotics to inhibit cell wall synthesis in order to kill infectious bacteria. The infections that it usually treats are those that have been caused by streptococci and staph.

This antibiotic is also widely used after a surgical operation has been performed because it serves to prevent infections during the postoperative period.

Other diseases used by oxacillin are infections in the ear, bones, skin, urinary tract, respiratory diseases, etc.

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9. Azithromycin

This is another of the most used antibiotics, of a bactericidal type; too aims to damage ribosomes and inhibit protein synthesis with the aim of weakening the bacteria to kill it.

This type of antibiotics are used to treat streptococcal, staphylococcal, chlamydial, "Listeria", "Treponema" infections, among others.

In addition, they are also used to try to fight diseases such as pneumonia, bronchitis, tonsillitis, pharyngitis, otitis, sinusitis, chlamydia, urethritis and more.

Precautions when taking them

It should be noted that there are numerous cases of people who self-medicate with antibiotics, which can cause serious problems for their health.

It is also common for antibiotics to be misused when they are used to try to fight a virus from which they have been infected, although these drugs have been developed in order to fight bacterial diseases, like the examples mentioned above. It should be noted that an antibiotic is not useful for viral diseases (for example, COVID-19, the common cold, the flu, viral gastroenteritis, herpes zoster, etc.).

Also, it is important to know that antibiotics are not without side effects, such as dizziness, headache, decomposition, nausea, general malaise, among others.

Therefore, it is imperative that antibiotics are prescribed by a qualified professional, a doctor. In addition, these types of drugs are not available over the counter in pharmacies as they require a prescription after having been examined by a professional, antibiotics being what he has considered the most appropriate to treat the diagnosis accomplished.