While Z-Paks can help adults and children recover from bacterial infections, there are some precautions to consider before taking the prescription drug.
The following medicines have negative interactions with Z-Paks:. Note: There are no drug interactions between azithromycin and Nyquil, so you can safely take these two drugs together to ease symptoms of a cough, sore throat, headache, fever, runny nose, and sneezing. Many cough and cold medications are not safe for people with high blood pressure or glaucoma. Seek medical help right away if you experience fainting, severe dizziness, a fast or irregular heartbeat, or an allergic reaction.
You should also seek medical treatment if any of these side effects persist or worsen. Azithromycin has also caused abnormal changes in the electrical activity of the heart, which can lead to a potentially fatal irregular heart rhythm, according to the U. Patients at risk for developing this condition include those who have low blood levels of potassium or magnesium, have a slower-than-average heart rate, or use drugs that treat abnormal heart rhythms arrhythmia.
Talk to your healthcare provider before taking a Z-Pak to discuss all possible side effects and drug interactions. He or she can provide medical advice on how to avoid or treat adverse effects. For example, taking this medicine with food could prevent an upset stomach. Amoxicillin is a common alternative to azithromycin.
Amoxicillin can be prescribed alone, or as Augmentin, which contains amoxicillin and clavulanate. Clavulanate is added to amoxicillin to prevent resistance.
They treat bacterial infections, not viruses. If used…. In a bid to reduce incorrect use of antibiotics and spread of superbugs, the ACP and CDC have issued advice on prescribing them for acute respiratory…. The symptoms of a sinus infection are very similar to those caused by a cold, but if symptoms continue for some time, medical help may be needed…. Can you take a Z pack for a cold? Medically reviewed by J. Keith Fisher, M. Is the Z pack safe? Uses and effectiveness Cold remedies Preventing a cold Summary The Z pack is a 5-day antibiotic treatment that does not work on the common cold.
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Medically reviewed by Alana Biggers, M. What should you eat when you are sick? Medically reviewed by Natalie Butler, R. Antibiotics can also prevent strep throat from turning into a more serious illness, such as rheumatic fever. Rheumatic fever is a disease that can damage your heart valves. Z-Pack is a form of the brand-name drug Zithromax, which contains the antibiotic azithromycin.
Azithromycin is used to treat many different kinds of bacterial infections , including bronchitis and pneumonia. The antibiotics amoxicillin or penicillin are most often used for this condition. That said, azithromycin or Z-Pack may be used to treat strep throat in certain cases. You can easily spread a strep throat infection through direct contact with mucus from your nose or throat, such as by coughing or sneezing.
You can also spread it by drinking from the same glass as someone else or sharing a plate of food with them. If your doctor thinks azithromycin is a good choice for you, they may prescribe a generic version of azithromycin or a Z-Pack. Each Z-Pack contains six milligram mg tablets of Zithromax. You would take two tablets on the first day, followed by one tablet daily for four days. A Z-Pack typically takes at least five days to fully work, but it can start to relieve your sore throat and other symptoms on the first day you take it.
If your doctor prescribes a generic version of azithromycin, your treatment may only last three days. Be sure to take your Z-Pack or generic azithromycin exactly as your doctor prescribes.
If you stop taking an antibiotic early, it could make the infection come back or make future infections more difficult to treat. The way doctors think about prescribing all antibiotics—not just Z-Packs—has evolved since these medications were introducted.
Many people, like me, grow up being told that they had some kind of a rash or other vaguely bad reaction after getting penicillin treatment as a baby, which is very possibly true.
But people grow out of these sorts of reactions , Dr. Vijayan says, and doctors now appreciate just how exceptionally rare true penicillin allergies are. About 10 percent of patients report a penicillin allergy, according to estimates from the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology AAAI , but about 90 percent of them may not actually have one. So, many of the people who took Z-Packs because they thought it was their only option may have been perfectly fine just getting the penicillin instead, making them even more egregiously overprescribed.
Considering what valuable and effective tools penicillin and its related antibiotics are there are now many derivatives of penicillin that build on the original formulas to better target specific bacterial vulnerabilities , it would be a real shame to continue avoiding these first-line treatments due to unfounded concerns. The truth is that, for many antibiotics that are routinely prescribed in primary care, a shorter course is totally fine —sometimes even better—than a longer one.
But there are also other complexities here, Dr. Vijayan explains, like the fact that, in some cases, a shorter duration could actually reduce the likelihood of antibiotic resistance developing.
There are still solid uses for azithromycin, including the treatment of chlamydia, Dr. First off, remember that not all illnesses that cause symptoms like a sore throat are bacterial—they are far more likely to be due to a viral infection, meaning no antibiotic on earth will help you. Second, remember that illnesses like these go away on their own, but some symptoms—like a lingering cough , for instance—may take a really, really long time to do so like, a few weeks even.
That might make you think your random cold has graduated to the level of, say, bronchitis, and therefore you deserve some meds. And, lastly, even if you do have an illness that would have gotten you an easy Z-Pack prescription a few years ago, Dr.
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