It is good to know a few basic details about antibiotics, before moving towards antibiotics without a prescription

What are Antibiotics? 

As the name indicates, antibiotics are medicines that help fight bacterial infections in the bodies of humans and animals. These medicines inhibit the activity of bacteria in the body or kill the bacteria.

Here are the Three Ways in Which one Can take Antibiotics:

  • By the oral route, or mouth. Forms of medicine could be liquid, capsules, or pills
  • Tropical use. This does not go directly into the body but is applied on top in the form of a spray, ointment, or cream. This includes ear drops, eye ointments, and eye drops
  • Directly into the bloodstream through an injection or intravenously (IV). More serious infections are treated this way

Antibiotics without Prescription

Which Infections are Treated by antibiotics?

Antibiotics only treat some kinds of bacterial infections, including E Coli, urinary tract infections, and strep throat. You should not use antibiotics when you don’t need them. For example some ear infections and many sinus infections. The healthcare providers decide the best medicine for you by seeing your condition and medical history. 

Can Antibiotics Treat Viral Infections?

Antibiotics can only treat bacterial infections, they do not work on any viral infections.

You Should not take Antibiotics for Any of the Following Conditions:

  • Flu
  • Colds and runny noses
  • Most cases of bronchitis
  • Most types of sore throats (not including strep throat)

Is it possible to Get Antibiotics Without Having a Prescription?

There are many types of antibiotics, some need a prescription by the doctor, and you can have some over the counter. There are some other medicines also available over the counter that you should use before using antibiotics. For instance, Azo is an over-the-counter medicine that treats urinary tract infections. Sometimes, this medicine is enough to cure the infection and you do not further need to take an antibiotic to treat the infection.

Let us look closely at the antibiotics available over the counter and which you can get without a prescription from the doctor.

Antibiotics without Prescription

Which Antibiotics Can you Get Without a Prescription?

There are some antibiotics that you can get without a doctor’s prescription, over the counter. You can get them from an online pharmacy such as supermeds.to or get them from a drug store or local pharmacy. There are certain antibiotics you can get without a prescription, including topical antibiotics. To get stronger antibiotics, including oral antibiotics, you need a doctor’s prescription.

There are different routes in the body for antibiotics to go in and be applied to the body. Antibiotics can be administered using invasive and less invasive ways.

Here are the Four Antibiotic Administration Route types Available, Which will be Discussed Further:

  • Topical (some antibiotics available without a prescription)
  • Oral (doctor’s prescription needed)
  • Intravenous (IV) (doctor’s prescription needed)
  • Intramuscular (IM) (doctor’s prescription needed)

Topical routes are the less invasive routes of administration of antibiotics. You can get many topical antibiotics without a doctor’s prescription. This type of antibiotic includes creams and ointments that are to be spread onto the skin to cure not-very-severe scrapes, acne, burns, and wounds.

The Following Topical Antibiotics are Available Over the Counter:

  • Clearskin/Proactiv (Benzoyl peroxide)
  • Neosporin Plus (neomycin/polymyxin B/pramoxine)
  • Neosporin (bacitracin/neomycin/polymyxin B)
  • Polysporin (bacitracin/polymyxin B)

Some stronger topical antibiotics are not available over the counter and need a prescription, including Mupirocin. These treat those infections that are so severe that over-the-counter topical antibiotics are not able to treat them.

Oral, intramuscular, and intravenous antibiotics are not available without a doctor’s prescription. Oral antibiotics cure bacterial infections and require the patient to take them by mouth.

These are Some Common Infections for Which Doctors Prescribe Oral Antibiotics:

  • Strep throat
  • Urinary tract infections
  • Dental infections
  • Some types of sexually transmitted infections
  • Pneumonia
  • Serious skin infections also called cellulitis

The Most Common Antibiotics Only Available With a Doctor’s Prescription

After discussing antibiotics without a prescription, it is good to discuss antibiotics that are not available over the counter.

Antibiotics without Prescription

There are more than 100 kinds of antibiotics, each one is used for the treatment of specific symptoms.

The Commonly Prescribed Antibiotics are:

  • Piperacillin/tazobactam
  • Clindamycin
  • Levofloxacin
  • Ceftriaxone
  • Azithromycin
  • Metronidazole
  • Amoxicillin

Every antibiotic offers benefits at the cost of some risks and side effects. The common side effect is vomiting, antibiotics can also cause gut microbiome disturbance and can have drug interactions. These risks and side effects make it good to take a prescription from a medical doctor before using an antibiotic. 

When do We Need a Prescription for Antibiotics?

Some antibiotics such as topical antibiotics are available over the counter, they are creams and ointments to apply on small burns, scrapes, and cuts. But for stronger topical antibiotics, and other kinds of antibiotics, a prescription is needed from a doctor. 

How Can We Get Antibiotics Without Visiting a Doctor?

Oral antibiotics, including penicillin and amoxicillin, are available without seeing a doctor. You can get other antibiotics as well without personally talking to the doctor. You can have an appointment with the doctor over a video or phone call and they will prescribe medicines without the need to go and see the doctor. The doctor can diagnose the medical condition during an online consultation and determine the most suitable treatment for the patient. Then they could send the antibiotic prescription to the local pharmacy electronically and you can get it collected from there.

Why Do Most Antibiotics Need a Prescription?

Here are Some Reasons Why you Need a Prescription for Antibiotics:

  • Misuse and overuse: Doctors know when it is good and essential to prescribe antibiotics. Overuse and misuse can lead to the mutation of bacteria into a “super” bacteria that even the antibiotic cannot treat.
  • Proper knowledge is needed: To start using an antibiotic, you must first know which bacteria you need to treat. The doctors can correctly identify the bacteria and then prescribe the correct antibiotic to you. 
  • Side effects and drug interactions: Different antibiotics interact with other medicines and may have side effects. The doctor makes sure that the antibiotic is safe for you and will not negatively react with any vitamins, herbal or vitamin supplements you are currently using. 

Antibiotics Online

Antibiotics without Prescription

To get antibiotics online, or for more information about antibiotics without prescription, visit supermeds.to.