Healio: 'Shorter is better' message slow to reach pediatrics
By Rose Weldon
Many studies have shown that shorter courses of antibiotic therapy are just as effective as longer ones for certain infections, including those that impact children. The idea is commonly referred to using the mantra “shorter is better.”
In an article published in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society, physicians outlined the evidence supporting shorter antibiotic courses for three common pediatric upper respiratory tract infections and discussed the impact that academic imprinting has on prescribing practices in pediatrics.
We spoke with two of the authors — Rana E. El Feghaly, MD, MSCI, director of the outpatient antibiotic stewardship program at Children’s Mercy Kansas City, and Nicole M. Poole MD, MPH, associate medical director of the antimicrobial stewardship program at Children’s Hospital Colorado — to learn more.
Healio: Do you think the message that long antibiotic courses may not be necessary for many common illnesses has been received by most pediatricians?
El Feghaly: I am not sure the message has been shared with most pediatricians yet! Studies have shown that prescribers and parents do not have reservations about shorter courses of antibiotics if they know they would be as effective as longer courses. This is where antimicrobial stewards can focus their efforts because it seems to me to be a low-hanging fruit for quality improvement efforts. In fact, investigators in Chicago found that merely changing the medical record’s preset durations allowed for substantial improvement in antibiotic duration use.
Read the full article via Healio