Table of Contents
- 1 Can you cure viral or bacterial diseases?
- 2 Do viruses last longer than bacterial infections?
- 3 What is the only cure for the common cold and the flu?
- 4 Why can’t we cure viruses with antibiotics?
- 5 What is the treatment of bacterial and viral infections?
- 6 When do we become more concerned about bacterial infections?
Many human illnesses are caused by infection with either bacteria or viruses. Most bacterial diseases can be treated with antibiotics, although antibiotic-resistant strains are starting to emerge. Viruses pose a challenge to the body’s immune system because they hide inside cells.
Do viruses last longer than bacterial infections?
Bacterial Infections Symptoms persist longer than the expected 10-14 days a virus tends to last.
What is the only cure for the common cold and the flu?
No medicines can “cure” colds and flu. However, there are many over-the-counter (OTC) medicines that can ease the discomfort caused by the symptoms of colds and flu. In addition, there are prescription medicines and a vaccine that can treat and prevent the flu.
What is the difference between virus and disease?
Viruses are smaller than bacteria. Bacteria can survive without a host, although a virus can’t because it attaches itself to cells. Viruses almost always lead to diseases (at a much higher rate than bacteria). To prevent a virus, you need to get a vaccination that is specifically made to prevent that virus strain.
Why is it so hard to find a cure for viruses?
The main difficulty is that viruses are technically not alive, instead depending on the “machinery” inside human cells to reproduce, said Zachary A. Klase, associate professor of biology at the University of the Sciences. So a drug that targets any part of that parasitic cycle could harm the patient in the process.
Why can’t we cure viruses with antibiotics?
The reasons involve biology and, to a lesser extent, money. Drug companies have developed treatments for a handful of viruses in the last few decades, such as HIV and the flu, but the arsenal is minimal when compared with all the antibiotics we have for treating bacteria. Remember that viruses are not bacteria, so antibiotics are no help.
Treatment of Bacterial and Viral Infections. The discovery of antibiotics for bacterial infections is considered one of the most important breakthroughs in medical history. Unfortunately, bacteria are very adaptable, and the overuse of antibiotics has made many of them resistant to antibiotics.
When do we become more concerned about bacterial infections?
In some cases we become more concerned that the infection may be caused by a bacterial infection. Bacterial infections may be the result of “secondary infection” (meaning that the virus initiated the process but a bacteria followed) when the: Symptoms persist longer than the expected 10-14 days a virus tends to last.