When Should Antibiotics Be Prescribed & For How Long?

Gonzalo Bearman, MD, MPH, Professor of Medicine and Hospital Epidemiologist, Virginia Commonwealth University, explains when to prescribe antibiotics and suggests to pay attention to the data when it comes to length of treatment.

Interview Transcript (slightly modified for readability)

“Antibiotics should be only prescribed when there truly is a bacterial infection. If that’s the case, if there’s data to support a shorter course of antibiotics versus a longer course—for example, a 10-day course of penicillin versus a 7-day course of penicillin—we should probably offer the shorter course.

Having said that, I think the patient should complete their therapy as prescribed, whether it’s the shorter or the longer course, by the physician to minimize the emergence of resistance of bacteria.”