HELLO DOCTOR? Pharmacists want to test better first to avoid prescribing the antibiotic unnecessarily against viruses
It is therefore crucial to make more precise diagnoses. “There are tests that check for three viruses: Covid, influenza and RSV” the origin of bronchiolitis, of which France is undergoing an epidemic. Another type of test, “in the Netherlands there is a CRP assay, the level of which varies depending on whether the infection is viral or bacterial, and this for all types of infections” enthusiasm Pierre-Olivier Variot. When the test shows the presence of a virus, the medicine is useless. “If we got to have these tests taken care of at health insurance, we would reduce the consumption of antibiotics” without altering the care provided, he says. In the Netherlands, the use of amoxicillin has thus declined; by 45% with the new tests. This would allow French pharmacies to have sufficient stock all winter for the children who will need it.