Antibiotics are not needed for ear infections
2011 March 10 by Randall Neustaedter OMD
Ear infections represent the most common reason for antibiotic prescriptions in children, even though the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that most children with acute ear infections can be observed for a period of 48 to 72 hours without antibiotics (AAP Subcommittee, 2004). They reached this conclusion because most children with ear infections will get better just doing nothing (Rosenfeld 2003). A study published in the November 2010 issue of JAMA confirms the wisdom of avoiding antibiotics for the treatment of ear infections.
Antibiotics for Strep Throat?
2011 March 10 by Randall Neustaedter OMD
(Adapted from Child Health Guide: Holistic Pediatrics for Parents, North Atlantic Books, 2005)
Conventional Treatment
Most physicians will insist on treating strep throat with antibiotics. The specific organism is Group A beta-hemolytic streptococcus. The effectiveness of antibiotics for recovery from strep throat has been controversial, with early studies showing no effect on symptoms (Brink et al., 1951; Denny et al., 1953) and later studies showing dramatic improvement (Randolph et al., 1985). The second reason doctors treat strep with antibiotics is because they can prevent one of the complications of strep throat, acute rheumatic fever (ARF), which commonly damages heart valves and can prove fatal. Antibiotics do not seem to prevent some other complications, specifically toxic shock syndrome or kidney infections (Weinstein and Le Frock, 1971). However, the incidence of rheumatic fever has decreased dramatically since the time when thousands of people died every year from that extremely infectious and painful disease.
