Shortage of penicillin G: impact on antibiotic prescribing at a US tertiary care centre.
A six-year retrospective study was undertaken to examine the effect of the recent penicillin G (penG) shortage on antibiotic prescribing practices at a tertiary care centre in the US. Prior to the shortage, penG was predominantly used for intrapartum prophylaxis of group B streptococcal disease. As the supply of penG ended temporarily in October 1999, penG use declined dramatically, ampicillin replaced penG in obstetrics and a shift to broad-spectrum agents was noted in non-obstetric patients potentially eligible for penG treatment. Shortage-triggered treatment changes had a negative effect on prescribing patterns, which may contribute to antibiotic resistance.
Division of Infectious Diseases, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT, USA. harbarth@post.harvard.edu
Stephan
S
Harbarth
Adi V
AV
Gundlapalli
William
W
Stockdale
Matthew H
MH
Samore
D000328:Adult; D000667:Ampicillin / Q000600:supply & distribution; D016208:Databases, Factual; D011307:Drug Prescriptions / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004363:Drug Utilization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009775:Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Hospital; D010400:Penicillin G / Q000600:supply & distribution*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014481:United States
D000667:Ampicillin; D010400:Penicillin G