title: Prescription of antibiotics in intensive care units in Latin America: an observational study.
abstract: A one-day point prevalence study to investigate the patterns of antibiotic use was undertaken in 43 latin American (LA) intensive care units. Of 510 patients admitted, 231 received antibiotic treatment on the day of the study (45%); in 125 cases (54%) due to nosocomial-acquired infections. The most frequent infection reported was nosocomial pneumonia (43%). Only in 122 patients (53%) were cultures performed before starting antibiotic treatment. 33% of the isolated microorganisms were enterobacteriaceae (40% extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing), 23% methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and 17% carbapenems-resistant non-fermentative Gram-negatives. The antibiotics most frequently prescribed were carbapenems (99/231, 43%); alone (60/99, 60%) or in combination with vancomycin (39/99, 40%). "Restricted" antibiotics (carbapenems, vancomycin, piperacillin-tazobactam, broad-spectrum cephalosporins, tigecycline, polymixins and linezolid) were most frequently indicated in severely ill patients (APACHE II score at admission >15, p=0.0007 and, SOFA score at the beginning of the antibiotic treatment >3, p=0.0000). Only 36% of antibiotic treatments were cultured-directed.Our findings help explain the high rates of multidrug-resistant pathogens in LA settings (i.e. ESBL-producing Gram-negatives) and the severity of the registered patients illnesses.
authors.affiliation: Insituto Sacre Coeur, Argentina. djcurcio@gmail.com
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Curcio
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Alí
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Duarte
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Defilippi Pauta
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ibáñez-Guzmán
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chung Sang
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Valencia
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Plano
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Paredes Oña
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Arancibia
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Montufar Andrade
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Morales Alava
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cañarte Bermudez
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: La Fuente Zerain
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Alanis Mirones
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rojas Suarez
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guzmán Torrico
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vergara Centeno
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Medina
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Marín
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Caero
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Durán Crespo
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gómez Duque
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Játiva
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Belloni
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Romero
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Aguilera Perrogón
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Camacho Alarcón
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Camargo
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cevallos
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Intriago Cedeño
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Urbina Contreras
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001419:Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000382:microbiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D011307:Drug Prescriptions / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial; D018432:Drug Resistance, Multiple; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007843:Latin America; D008297:Male; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008875:Middle Aged; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents