Assessing the risks and benefits of antibiotic use in a large cohort of patients consulting their physicians for respiratory infections, researchers find a small reduction in subsequent hospitalization for pneumonia and no increase in severe adverse drug reactions for those prescribed antibiotics.
Analyzing data on more than 1.5 million patient visits for nonspecific respiratory infections, researchers found antibiotics were prescribed in 65 percent of cases. The adjusted risk difference for treated versus untreated patients per 100,000 visits was 1.07 fewer adverse events and 8.16 fewer pneumonia hospitalizations within 15 days following the visit.
The number needed to treat was 12,255 patients to prevent one hospitalization.
The authors conclude this small benefit from antibiotics for a common ambulatory diagnosis creates a persistent tension; at the societal level, physicians are compelled to reduce antibiotic prescribing, thus minimizing future resistance, whereas at the encounter level, they are compelled to optimize the benefit-risk balance for that patient.
Risks and Benefits Associated With Antibiotic Use for Acute Respiratory Infections: A Cohort Study By Sharon B. Meropol, MD, PhD, et al, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine