Eye flu and the indiscriminate use of antibiotics

Subject : Science and technology

Section: Biotechnology

Context: The recent surge in the eye flu cases and the indiscriminate use of the antibiotics drugs.

More about the news:

A rise in conjunctivitis cases occurred after heavy rains in northern India due to the Adenovirus.
Most cases of viral conjunctivitis resolve on their own but during this outbreak, antibacterial eye drops were commonly used, often in combination with steroids or other drugs.
The eye drops contained antibacterial agents like gentamicin, chloramphenicol, moxifloxacin, ofloxacin, and tobramycin and steroids such as betamethasone and dexamethasone.
These eye drops included compounds irrelevant to treating either bacterial or viral conjunctivitis.
The “one drug treats all” approach was prevalent in prescribing these drops.

What is conjunctivitis:

Conjunctivitis, commonly known as Pink Eye, is an infection or inflammation of the transparent membrane that covers the eyelid and eyeball. This membrane is called the conjunctiva.
It can be caused by viruses, bacteria or by allergies.
Both bacterial and viral conjunctivitis are highly contagious, while allergic conjunctivitis is not.
It usually occurs through direct or indirect contact.
Direct transmission happens through droplets from the cough or sneeze of an infected person or through hand-to-eye contact..
Indirectly, it can spread via shared personal items like towels, makeup, pillows or contact lenses.

Why the do eyes appear pink:

When small blood vessels in the conjunctiva become swollen and irritated, they’re more visible.
This is what causes the whites of the eyes to appear reddish or pink.

What is Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR).

Antimicrobial resistance is the resistance acquired by any microorganism (bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasite, etc.) against antimicrobial drugs (such as antibiotics, antifungals, antivirals, antimalarials, and anthelmintics) that are used to treat infections.
As a result, standard treatments become ineffective, infections persist and may spread to others.
Microorganisms that develop antimicrobial resistance are sometimes referred to as “superbugs”.
Antimicrobial resistance is now regarded as a major threat to public health across the globe.

What are the various schedules under the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945:

The Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945 has provisions for classification of drugs into different schedules and also guidelines for storage, sale, display and prescription of drugs under each schedule. Major schedules are:
Schedule H
- The drugs under this schedule can be sold only based on the prescription of a registered medical practitioner and only the amount specified in the prescription should be sold. It can be supplied only to licenced parties.
- These drugs should be labelled with the symbol ‘Rx’ and conspicuously displayed on the left top corner of the label.
Schedule X
- Same rules are applied as per schedule H drugs. Here the drug retailer has to preserve the copy of prescription for two years and the drugs should be labelled with the symbol ‘XRx’ and conspicuously displayed on the left top corner of the label.
- Schedule X includes narcotic and psychotropic substances-based drugs.
Schedule H1
- This schedule was included in 2013 to check the indiscriminate use of antibiotics, anti-TB and some other drugs in the country. These drugs cannot be sold without a valid prescription.
- The package of the drugs will have a mandatory warning printed in a box with red colour border.
- The chemist should maintain the list of the customer names and details of the doctor who prescribed it.
- The list should be maintained with 3 years of data.