Can Antibiotics Cause Infections?!

A hospital in Glasgow thought so. Faced with having to close down its neuro surgical intensive care unit due to severe cross infections, the hospital elected to discontinue both preventive and therapeutic antibiotic therapy!

Results? First there was an immediate decrease in chest and urinary cross infections. Within 30 days the cross infection rate dropped to zero. Remarkably, the incidence of all infections was reduced; the respiratory infection rate falling from 45% to 15%, and the urinary infection rate falling from 21% to 8%. There were no serious problems related to discontinuing antibiotics--only good results.

Making a decision like this does not come easy. Especially when many of the patients were already on what was considered "life essential" antibiotic therapy. The staff of the hospital is convinced that many infections resolve in spite of--rather than because of-- antibiotic therapy. In other words, that means that your own body is responsible for clearing most infections. Most telling of all, they are convinced that "--the primary cause of many infections (most often attributed to germs or other causes) is in fact the misuse or overuse of broad-spectrum antibiotics".

Now here's the real kicker. This happened in 1971. It's taken more than 25 years for the medical community to wake up and finally admit that the "magic" has gone out of the "magic bullet".

How much longer are we going to have to wait for the Veterinarian community to catch up? Has anyone out there gone through any kind of surgery for your animal without the vet insisting that an antibiotic be used either before or after surgery? (Sometimes both?). Has anyone out there found a vet that talks about boosting the immune system rather than using an antibiotic for the "just in case" infection?

Why must it be up to the breeder network to "teach" the veterinarian what should by now be common knowledge? I know I'm stepping on some toes here, but somebody has to speak out to get the message across! Somebody has to support the brave individual holistic vet that dares to put aside the outdated "acceptable" protocol and chooses to work without reaching for an antibiotic at every opportunity. If not the breeder then who?