Therapeutic Evaluation of Various Antibiotics Use in Paediatric Inpatients: Insights from a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital

Background: Antimicrobial consumption has led to the development of antimicrobial resistance, a major concern to the healthcare system as it has severe consequences, including loss of life. Antimicrobial resistance predicts 4.7 million deaths in Asia by 2050.

Objective: To reduce, the risk of antimicrobial resistance, misuse of antibiotics and prevent the possible drug interactions.

Methodology: A prospective observational study was conducted in paediatric department for 6 months. In-patients who were under antibiotic therapy and patients with co-morbid conditions were included in the study.

Results: A total of 160 patients were enrolled in this study among which males (56.25%) were more predominant than females (43.75%). Majority of the subjects were aged between 1-11years which accounts 56.25%. Respiratory tract infections (RTI) (33%) were the most common. Ceftriaxone was the commonly prescribed antibiotic 24.64%. The common dosage form of antibiotics were injectables in 91.39% cases. A total of 40 drug-drug interactions were found among which 80% were antibiotics interacting with other drugs. In this study 6.87% subjects underwent antibiotic sensitivity testing, whereas remaining 93.12% did not undergo any such.

Conclusion: We conclude that the development of institutional guidelines for diagnosing and treating common infectious diseases can minimize the risk of antibiotic resistance in paediatric patients. In addition, implementing antibiotic stewardship strategies can help in avoiding unintended consequences.