Someone with a cold should remember that antibiotics can cause more harm than good in these cases. In severe cases of the flu , antiviral medications such as rimantadine or oseltamivir may be given. For bacterial infections such as bacterial pneumonia , antibiotics are given. Other treatments may help relieve symptoms. In view of the FDA's public health advisory, anyone who has products at home containing phenylpropanolamine should discard them.
All medications have possible side effects.
Common antibiotics can cause allergic reactions , stomach upset, and other effects. Most people recover completely within a few days. Having a URI usually doesn't prevent a person from catching another URI in the future. If long-term effects such as kidney damage occur from the URI, a person may need further treatment. If symptoms continue to get worse or fail to improve after several days, the healthcare provider should be told.