A study, published in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases, tested if a 48-hour automatic stop order during neonatal intensive care unit admissions would decrease antibiotic use.
Researchers conducted an observational double-cohort study in a level 3 NICU at UnityPoint Health-Meriter in Madison, Wis. They studied antibiotic use before and after the implementation of the autostop initiative. The admission order set included 48 hours of ampicillin and gentamicin coverage.
Researchers found after implementation of the initiative total antibiotic doses given per patient decreased by 35 percent and doses per patient-day decreased by 25 percent.
Additionally, researchers saw a 66 percent decrease in the use of vancomycin, an antibiotic not included in the admission order set.
"An admission-order autostop was highly effective at decreasing antibiotic usage with no doses intended for a pathogen missed," study authors concluded.