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Outpatient Antibiotic Prescribing among Older Adults in the United States, 2011 to 2014
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10 2018
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Source: J Am Geriatr Soc. 66(10):1998-2002
Details:
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Alternative Title:J Am Geriatr Soc
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Personal Author:
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Description:Background/Objectives:
Older adults ≥65 years have the highest outpatient antibiotic prescribing rate of all age groups. We characterized antibiotics prescribed to older adults to guide efforts to improve antibiotic use.
Design:
Outpatient antibiotic prescriptions dispensed for older adults from 2011–2014 were extracted from the IQVIA Xponent database. A chi-square trend analysis was conducted to assess annual changes in antibiotic prescribing rates. A descriptive analysis of prescribing rates by antibiotic, age group, sex, state, census region, and provider specialty was completed.
Setting:
Ambulatory
Participants:
Adults aged ≥65 years in the United States
Results:
During 2011–2014, outpatient antibiotic prescribing rates remained stable in U.S. older adults (P = 0.89). In 2014, older adults were dispensed 51.6 million prescriptions (1115 prescriptions/1000 persons). Persons aged ≥75 years had a higher prescribing rate (1157 prescriptions/1000 persons) than persons aged 65–74 (1084 prescriptions/1000 persons). Prescribing rates were highest in the South and lowest in the West (1228 and 854 prescriptions/1000 persons, respectively). The most commonly prescribed class was quinolones, followed by penicillins and macrolides. Azithromycin was the most commonly prescribed drug, followed by amoxicillin and ciprofloxacin. Internists and family physicians prescribed 43% of antibiotic courses.
Conclusions:
On average, in 2014, U.S. adults ≥65 years received enough outpatient antibiotic courses for every older adult to receive at least one. Quinolones and azithromycin are potential targets for assessing the appropriateness of antibiotic prescribing among this population. Interventions to improve use targeting internist and family physicians in the South census region might have the potential to be more impactful.
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Pubmed ID:30221746
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Pubmed Central ID:PMC7909599
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Volume:66
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Issue:10
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