58%

Percent of prescriptions for antibiotics written for patients aged 14 and under in 2007-08 that were for five upper respiratory infections — sore throat, common cold, ear infection, bronchitis and sinus infection — that are typically caused by viruses and do not require treatment with antibiotics. That prescription rate marks a 24% decline since 1993-94, according to the CDC. Overuse of antibiotics contributes to the rise of drug-resistant bacteria, so why do doctors keep prescribing them unnecessarily? "Doctors often feel pressure to prescribe when they are uncertain or they think the parent expects a prescription," Dr. Tarayn Fairlie, a medical epidemiologist at the CDC, told WebMD. [via WebMD]