A study published in JAMA Network Open examines antibiotic prescribing among outpatients with acute respiratory infections during influenza season.
Researchers studied 14,987 patients, 6 months and older, with acute respiratory infections at outpatient clinics during the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 influenza seasons. They collected antibiotic prescriptions, medical history and ICD-9 diagnosis codes from medical and pharmacy records.
Of the 14,987 patients with ARI, 41 percent were prescribed an antibiotic. Among those who received an antibiotic prescription (6,136 patients):
• 41 percent had diagnoses for which antibiotics are not indicated
• 84 percent patients were diagnosed as having a viral upper respiratory tract infection or bronchitis
Among the 3,306 patients not diagnosed as having pneumonia but who had the flu, 29 percent were prescribed an antibiotic.
"Antibiotic overuse remains widespread in the treatment of outpatient ARIs, including among patients with laboratory-confirmed influenza, although study sites may not be representative of other outpatient settings," study authors concluded.