There is a huge amount of evidence of the relationship between the use of antibiotics, even with their proper prescription, with an increase in the resistance of agents responsible for community-acquired infections. However, the misuse of antibiotics continues to be a global problem. There are several reasons for this. Among them - the desire of doctors to satisfy patients who require the appointment of antibiotics from a doctor, the wide availability of drugs, a lack of understanding of the ineffectiveness of antibiotics for viral infections, the need to choose between the public good and the good of an individual patient, and a number of others.

Most of the information available on the use of antibiotics is based on doctors' prescription data, but with this information-gathering approach, the possibility of drug exchange between people from different social groups is underestimated. To clarify this problem, E. Larson and his colleagues (USA) have attempted to assess the frequency and causes of antibiotic use by the Hispanic population in New York.

To this end, members of 631 families living in the center of the city were visited and interviewed. According to the data obtained, symptoms of infectious diseases during the last 30 days of visit were observed in 911 (33.2%) of the 2743 people questioned, including 441 (48.4 % ) people, 354 (38.9%) took antibiotics on their own. Among the symptoms identified as the source of antibiotics, respiratory symptoms (68.9%) prevailed, among others, gastrointestinal symptoms (15.3% ) and an increase in temperature (12.8%) and skin infections (2.8%). The frequency of medical visits was higher among people with chronic illnesses born in the United States, as well as those with fever, runny nose, and skin infections (p <0.05). Antibacterial drugs were more often taken by patients with chronic illnesses, fever and respiratory symptoms, as well as by people who spent most of their time at home.

All of the above indicates a fairly high frequency of antibiotic use, and often independent and not in accordance with the indications. Promotion of the rational use of antibacterial drugs is necessary, both among doctors and among the population; for ethnic groups, it must be done in the mother tongue.