Prague, Nov 16 (CTK) – Almost one half of antibiotics are prescribed for treatment uselessly, due to which bacterial resistance to antibiotics is growing in the Czech Republic, chief hygiene officer Vladimir Valenta told journalists before the forthcoming European Antibiotic Awareness Day on Monday.
Due to the overuse of antibiotics, morbidity, mortality and costs of health insurance companies are rising, too, Valenta said.
In the Czech Republic, the consumption of antibiotics rose by almost a quarter between 1989 and 2014, Valenta said.
Valenta called for cautious use of the antibiotics, which is the main issue of the European Antibiotic Awareness Day to be observed on November 18.
In the campaign, patients should be informed about the risks associated with the overuse of antibiotics.
Alena Steflova, head of the Czech WHO office, said some 25,000 patients were dying over the resistance to antibiotics in the EU annually.
According to the State Institute for Drug Control (SUKL), Czechs consumed almost 14.8 million packages of antibiotics last year, which was over 81 million daily doses.
These are the drugs administered both in hospitals and for home treatment.
In 2004, 14 million packages with 62.6 million daily doses were prescribed.
According to a poll conducted by the Czech Chamber of Pharmacies (CLK) , roughly 7 percent of Czechs use the antibiotics from their home supplies.
This is absolutely wrong because no correct diagnosis was made and it is unclear whether there was a viral or bacterial infection, the CLK warned.
