Comparative Analysis Of Antibiotic Prescribing Patterns And Their Association With Antimicrobial Resistance In Clinical Practice
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Abstract
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the serious clinical problems arising from improper and excessive use of antibiotics. In this context, this study comparatively evaluated the prescription practices of antibiotics and the relationship of such practices with AMR in clinical settings. This study employed a retrospective, observational and comparative study design, with data collected from 120 patient medical records, containing all necessary clinical, prescription and microbiological details. Descriptive statistics, Chi square test and logistic regression analyses were performed on the data obtained. Cephalosporins were the most prescribed antibiotic group (28.3%), with empirical prescriptions and broad-spectrum antibiotics being used in 60.0% and 63.3% of the cases, respectively. Antibiotic resistance was found among 54.2% of bacteria isolated, with Pseudomonas aeruginosa (66.7%) showing the highest percentage of resistance, followed by Klebsiella spp. (61.5%) and E. coli (54.3%). The significant relationships between antimicrobial resistance and empirical therapy (p = 0.009) and broad-spectrum prescription of antibiotics (p = 0.009) were also found. Logistic regression showed that broad spectrum prescription of antibiotics, empirical therapy and prior history of antibiotic exposure were the significant variables predicting resistance.
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