title: A prospective study of the use of antibiotics in the Emergency Department of a Chinese University Hospital.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Antibiotics are one of the most widely misused group of medicines. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of antibiotics in one of the paediatric emergency departments in China.
  
  
  METHODS
  We performed a prospective, cross-sectional study of antibiotic use in the paediatric emergency room of West China Second University Hospital. A total of 500 consecutive patients from March 25 to April 3 2013 were included. Clinical details of the patients were also collected in order to analyse antibiotic use.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The median age of patients was 2 years 2 months. The five most common conditions seen in the emergency department were wheezy bronchitis, upper respiratory tract infections, tonsillitis, pneumonia and diarrhoea. A total of 311 children (62%) received antibiotics. The antibiotics prescribed were predominantly cephalosporins and penicillins. More than one antibiotic was used in 51 patients. In total, 75% of the antibiotics prescribed were cephalosporins. More than three-quarters of the young children with wheezy bronchitis received antibiotics. Antibiotic use for children with an upper respiratory tract infections or tonsillitis was greater than the 20% maximum recommended by the European Surveillance of Antimicrobial Consumption.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The majority of children attending the emergency department received antibiotics. For many of the conditions, the use of antibiotics was inappropriate.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy/Evidence-Based Pharmacy Center, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.|Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Sichuan University, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Linan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy/Evidence-Based Pharmacy Center, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.|Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Sichuan University, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Die
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Academic Division of Child Health, University of Nottingham, Derbyshire Children's Hospital, Derby, UK.
authors.forename: Imti
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Choonara
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Sichuan University, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, China.|Department of Neonatology, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Dezhi
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mu
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy/Evidence-Based Pharmacy Center, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.|Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Sichuan University, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Lingli
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Sichuan University, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, China.|Department of Emergency, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Xihong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy/Evidence-Based Pharmacy Center, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.|Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Sichuan University, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, China.|West China School of Pharmacy, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Zuojie
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy/Evidence-Based Pharmacy Center, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.|Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Sichuan University, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, China.|West China School of Pharmacy, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Zhiqiang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy/Evidence-Based Pharmacy Center, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.|Key Laboratory of Birth Defects and Related Diseases of Women and Children, Sichuan University, Ministry of Education, Chengdu, China.|West China School of Pharmacy, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
authors.forename: Shuyan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Quan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002681:China; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004363:Drug Utilization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005260:Female; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011446:Prospective Studies
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents
keywords: antibiotics; emergency department; pediatrics 