Overview

• University of South Australia researchers reported that ibuprofen and paracetamol increased genetic mutations in E. coli exposed to the antibiotic ciprofloxacin.
• When the painkillers were combined, the bacteria developed high-level resistance to ciprofloxacin and showed increased resistance to multiple other antibiotic classes.
• The team, publishing in npj Antimicrobials and Resistance, identified activation of bacterial defense and efflux mechanisms that can expel antibiotics.
• The study assessed nine drugs common in aged care and warned that polypharmacy in nursing homes could foster antibiotic-resistant gut bacteria.
• Researchers and independent experts cautioned that the findings are from in vitro work and called for animal, gut-model, and clinical studies rather than stopping these medications.