Human use of antibiotics marketed for pets: An alarming trend

A case report of self-medication with over-the-counter fish antibiotic: Implications for pharmacists

“…A broad range of medically important antibiotics including penicillins, tetracyclines, and macrolides may be purchased without a prescription at local pet stores and from multiple online retailers. 5,6 Although over-the-counter antibiotics are marketed for pets and not labeled for human use, the easy access may facilitate the Disclosure: The authors declare no relevant conflicts of interest or financial relationships. Funding source: This research did not receive any grants from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.…”

“…For example, approximately 70,000 capsules of amoxicillin alone were sold on a popular web-auction site in a recent 3-month period. 6 The full magnitude and consequences of noneFDA-regulated animal antibiotics in humans have yet to be realized; however, nonprescription antibiotic use has worrying public health implications, including within pharmacists' ambulatory practices. This case report adds to the limited discussion in the literature regarding this topic and describes a case of attempted self-treatment of dental pain using an over-the-counter antibiotic marketed for use in pet fish.…”