# Explain why a patient with a bacterial chest infection may be at greater risk of developing antibiotic-resistant bacteria if they stop taking their prescribed course of antibiotics early.

> OCR GCSE Biology A: Gateway Science (J247) — B6.3 Monitoring and maintaining health · Explain · 4 marks

> A GP prescribes a patient a full 10-day course of antibiotics for a bacterial chest infection. The patient begins to feel better after five days and decides to stop taking the medication.

## Mark scheme (4 marks)

1. Some bacteria in the infection may survive if the full course is not completed
2. The surviving bacteria may be those that have (natural) resistance to the antibiotic
3. These resistant bacteria reproduce and pass on their resistance to offspring
4. This leads to a population of bacteria that can no longer be killed by that antibiotic

## Key terms

- [antibiotic](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/glossary/antibiotic)
- [bacteria](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/glossary/bacteria)

## Related

- [Revision notes for OCR GCSE Biology A: Gateway Science (J247)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/learn)
- [How to answer "Explain" questions](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/tools/command-word-cheatsheet)
- [Practice this with AI marking (free)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/start)

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Source: [GradeNine](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/q/explain-why-a-patient-with-a-94427eeb) · Published by Druglandscape Ltd.