Study highlights non-medical factors behind irresponsible antibiotic use
Non-prescription and irresponsible antibiotic use are prevalent across the world and are largely influenced by non-biomedical factors, an international team of researchers reported this week in Clinical Microbiology and Infection.
The review and meta-analysis of 71 studies covering 52 countries, many of them low- and middle-income countries (LMICS), explored the non-biomedical factors that influence healthcare consumers' antibiotic use globally. The aim was to develop a better understanding of what drives community antibiotic use in different parts of the world, and how future mitigation policies could help improve antibiotic use practices.
The analysis revealed a wide range of irresponsible antibiotic use in all regions. Self-medication with antibiotics for therapeutic purposes was reported in 48 studies from 40 countries, with a prevalence ranging from 3.1% (in 19 European countries) to 82% (Qatar) among adults, and from 3.3% (the United States) to 62% (China) among children.
The prevalence of prophylactic self-medication with antibiotics ranged from 6.0% (Serbia) to 33.4% (China). Over-the-counter purchasing of antibiotics was reported in 34 studies from 35 countries and ranged from 5.2% (Lebanon) to 88.8% (Tanzania). The prevalence of household storage of antibiotics ranged from 6.5% (Hong Kong) to 80.5% (Pakistan).
Antibiotic use was found to be heavily influenced by individuals' sociodemographic variables, perceptions of vulnerability and susceptibility to infections, and access to drugs. In addition, social-contextual factors such as barriers to healthcare resulted in avoiding medical interactions, purchasing antibiotics over-the-counter, and self-medicating. The meta-analysis further identified older age, living in rural areas, storing antibiotics at home, having relatives with medical backgrounds, and bearing a positive attitude towards self-medication with antibiotics to be risk factors for self-medication with antibiotics.
"This study identified the non-biomedical factors that drive antibiotic use in the community within different cultural contexts, highlighting the complexity of the challenge," the study authors wrote. "Future AMR [antimicrobial resistance] strategies that aim to reduce antibiotic use without clinical indication should incorporate a multifaceted community-based design that addresses non-biomedical drivers tailored to local contexts."
Nov 9 Clin Microbiol Infect study
Beta-lactam plus doxycycline tied to better pneumonia outcomes in elderly
A retrospective study of elderly pneumonia patients treated at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals found that use of doxycycline as part of guideline-concordant therapy was associated with lower mortality than regimens without doxycycline, researchers reported this week in Clinical Infectious Diseases.
Of the 70,533 patients 65 and older who were hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) at VA hospitals from 2002 through 2012, 5,282 (7.5%) received empiric therapy with a beta-lactam antibiotic plus doxycycline. That combination is an alternative regimen recommended for CAP under 2019 American Thoracic Society/Infectious Diseases Society of America guidelines, but prior to this study, there was limited evidence supporting its use.
To evaluate its efficacy, researchers compared 30- and 90-day mortality in patients who received a beta-lactam plus doxycycline with those who received other guideline-concordant regimens, using propensity score matching to balanced measured confounders between groups.
The unadjusted 30- and 90-day mortality rates were 6.4% and 13.8% for those who received a beta-lactam plus doxycycline, respectively, versus 9.1% and 16.8% in those who did not. In the propensity-score matched models, both 30-day (odds ratio [OR], 0.72; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.63 to 0.84) and 90-day (OR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.74 to 0.92) mortality were significantly lower for those who receive doxycycline.
"With growing antibiotic resistance to frontline agents, there is an urgent need for exploring and promoting newer antibacterial regimens to address the escalating burden of CAP," the study authors wrote.
"Our study suggests that an empiric regimen of beta-lactam and doxycycline is associated with similar, or better, outcomes compared to other guideline concordant empiric therapies. Randomized control trials are needed to confirm this finding and to identify the best therapies for patients hospitalized with CAP."
Nov 9 Clin Infect Dis abstract