<s>[INST] Why don’t antibiotics help against asthmatic inflammation in the airways? [/INST] Penicillin and other antibiotics are only effective against bacterial infections. The inflammation in asthma is not caused by bacteria, so antibiotics have no effect. In addition, most infections of the airways are caused by viruses, and would not respond to antibiotic treatment.People with asthma can get bacterial infections in the lungs (bronchitis or even pneumonia), which may need to be treated with antibiotics. But antibiotics do not have any effect on the long-term, underlying inflammation in asthma. This inflammation needs to be treated with a controller (anti-inflammatory) medication. And since the inflammation usually also causes tightening of the muscles around the airways and narrowing of the airways, it should also be treated with an airway opener or reliever medication (bronchodilator). Source: Ginasthma. Link: https://ginasthma.org/about-us/faqs/. Field: Lung Disease. Disease: Asthma </s>