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Healio
March 07, 2014
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CDC: Antibiotic misuse putting patients at risk

Poor antibiotic prescribing practices are putting patients at increased risk, according to a new CDC Vital Signs report published in MMWR.

“The Vital Signs report shows that prescribing varies widely among hospitals and that practices that are not optimal are putting patients at unnecessary risk of future drug-resistant infections, allergic reactions and intestinal infections that can be deadly from Clostridium difficile infection,” CDC Director Thomas Frieden, MD, MPH, said during a press conference.

Thomas R. Frieden, MD, MPH

Thomas Frieden

Researchers reported that, in some hospitals, physicians are three times more likely to prescribe antibiotics compared with physicians in other hospitals, even in similar patient cases.

Researchers also found that a 30% reduction in prescribing of antibiotics that cause CDI could result in a 25% reduction of those infections.

“While these drugs are often live-saving, prescribing them when they’re not needed or for the wrong duration fuels resistance and can set patients up for more drug-resistant infections in the future,” Frieden said. “Patients getting powerful antibiotics to treat a broad range of infections are up to three times more likely to get another infection from an even more resistant microbe.”

The CDC recommended that all hospitals establish an antibiotic stewardship program and identified seven components of an effective program, including:

  • Commitment;
  • Accountability;
  • Drug expertise;
  • Action;
  • Tracking and monitoring and prescribing antibiotic resistance patterns from the hospital;
  • Reporting; and
  • Education about antibiotic resistance patterns to improve prescribing practices.

“The bottom line is that we have to protect patients by protecting antibiotics,” Frieden said. “The drugs we have today are endangered, and any new drugs we get could be lost just as quickly if we don’t improve the way we prescribe and use them — if we don’t improve our stewardship.”

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.

Sources/Disclosures

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Source: CDC. MMWR. 2014;63:194-200.