Final answer:
Antibiotics cannot be used to treat viral infections; they are effective only against bacterial infections. Viral infections like the common cold or flu, and viral STIs, require management with antiviral drugs or are incurable. Misusing antibiotics can lead to antibiotic resistance.
Step-by-step explanation:
It is true that antibiotics cannot be used to effectively treat viral infections. Antibiotics are designed to combat bacterial infections, not viruses. When patients use antibiotics for viral illnesses like the common cold or flu, the treatment is ineffective because these are caused by viruses, against which antibiotics have no action.
For bacterial Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), antibiotics are usually effective and can often result in a cure. In contrast, viral STIs may be managed with antiviral drugs, but these infections typically persist for life as there is no cure for the virus itself. Similarly, conditions such as genital herpes, caused by viruses, are not treatable with antibiotics.
Furthermore, the inappropriate use of antibiotics can lead to the development of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria, making future bacterial infections more challenging to treat. Therefore, distinguishing between bacterial and viral infections is crucial to ensure the appropriate use of antimicrobial drugs.