Kati Shihadeh, PharmD, BCIDP

I routinely see prescribers avoid prescribing cephalosporin antibiotics for patients with a penicillin allergy.

Viral hepatitis is a major danger to public health. According to WHO’s 2024 Global Hepatitis Report, viral hepatitis deaths increased from 1.1 million in 2019 to 1.3 million in 2022, rates now similar to tuberculosis.

Gonorrhea is the second most common STI, with more than 82 million new infections globally each year, including 601,319 cases in the United States in 2023.

Syphilis, an STI caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum, has re-emerged as a major public health threat in the United States, with rates skyrocketing over the past decade.

It is estimated that approximately one-quarter of the world’s population has latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). Although effective therapies are available, these agents can have significant adverse effects that can complicate treatment.

Fecal microbiota-based therapies are becoming more prevalent in the management of Clostridioides difficile infection.

Although vaccines have reduced the burden of pneumococcal disease, pneumonia due to Streptococcus pneumoniae and invasive pneumococcal disease remains prevalent.

Influenza is responsible for significant mortality and hospitalization rates in the United States, ranging from 4,900 to 51,000 deaths and 100,000 to 710,000 hospitalizations annually between 2010 and 2023, according to the CDC.

As health care workers, we have daily encounters with sick patients who could potentially have a contagious illness. Measles is a particular challenge in the health care setting.

The term “antimicrobial stewardship” was first described in 1996 by John E. McGowan Jr., MD, and Dale N. Gerding, MD. Today, antimicrobial stewardship can be found in many different settings, including hospitals and community clinics.