Antibiotics

Between July and August 2016, a decrease of 10.4 days of therapy per 1000 patient days (7.6%; P = .002) was observed.

As a growing number of infections become resistant to antibiotic medications, it is becoming crucially important that providers not only practice antibiotic stewardship but also use effective antibiotics when they are needed.

A new report on US prescribing trends and stewardship initiatives assesses the scope of the antibiotic resistance problem and lays the groundwork for solutions.

We're failing to make sure cultures are indicated properly in catheterized patients, which can lead to serious disruptions of care.

Matthew Girgis, PharmD, PGY-2, discusses why it's advantageous to decrease patient exposure to vancomycin.

Recent commentaries—1 optimistic, the other less so—shed light on the challenges ahead and how we can hope to overcome them.

One of the biggest studies to-date on the relationship between cefepime plasma concentrations and neurotoxicity has identified which patients are at greatest risk.

Glenn Tillotson, PhD, explains how inappropriate empiric therapy can drive poor outcomes.

Investigators from the Washington State Department of Health set out to identify ways to leverage technology to increase public awareness of the importance of antimicrobial stewardship.

Dentists write 1 in 10 antibiotic prescriptions in the United States and a new study has found that more than 80% of the antibiotics prescribed for infection prophylaxis are unnecessary.

Antibiotics and chest x-rays are routinely used to diagnose and treat pediatric CAP, despite guidelines advising the contrary.

A study led by Cleveland Clinic investigators confirms that placing implantable cardiac devices inside an envelope that emits antibiotics slashes infection rates.

Although antibiotic prophylaxis for new mothers is common following caesarean section births, a new study provides evidence of benefits on infection reduction in women following operative vaginal birth.

A revision to the fluoroquinolone antimicrobial susceptibility testing breakpoints for 2 bacteria comes following evidence that previous breakpoints were too high to detect low-level antibiotic resistance.

The total number of bed days saved with outpatient oritavancin administration was 683 days throughout the study period.

In patients with MRSA bacteremia, implementing AUC/MIC-guided vancomycin dosing resulted in decreased average troughs and a decrease in daily vancomycin dose administered.

The FDA has issued label updates for a handful of fluoroquinolone antibiotics to note the risk of aortic dissections and aortic aneurysms in certain patients.

Vanessa Stevens, PhD, discusses her research on fluoroquinolone and cephalosporin prescribing and rates of Clostridium difficile infections at VA health care facilities.

Surgical-site infection was not found to be associated with duration of prophylaxis, but adjusted odds of AKI and C diff infection increased with each additional day of antimicrobial exposure.

An intervention involving improved communication and antibiotic timeouts in nursing homes reduced the days of antibiotic therapy, according to a recent study.

Tristan Ferry, MD, PhD, discusses why there is a need to develop alternatives to treat chronic bone and joint infections.

A shortage of infectious disease physicians should have us all concerned and here's why.

Investigators found increased mortality in the combination arm where 21% of patients died vs 16% in the standard therapy arm, although the number of patients with persistent bacteremia at day 5 in the combination arm was significantly reduced compared with standard therapy.

Investigators detail the activity of cefiderocol, a novel parenteral siderophore cephalosporin, against carbapenem-resistant clinical isolates.

In a study of hospitalized patients across Europe, oritavancin (MIC50/MIC90, 0.03/0.06 mg/L) inhibited all S aureus isolates at ≤0.12 mg/L (susceptible breakpoint).

Ignacio Martin-Loeches, MD, PhD, discusses the efficacy outcomes of the ASPECT-NP trial evaluating ceftolozane/tazobactam for the treatment of nosocomial pneumonia.

A large percentage (96%) of health care worker respondents reported feeling confident in their knowledge of antibiotic resistance, but only 60% answered the 7 key questions correctly.

Although the rate of outpatient antibiotic prescriptions is down overall, a new study highlights how the United States may be falling short of meeting antibiotic stewardship goals.

Warnings and concerns regarding fluoroquinolones are on the rise, but the antibiotics still play a role, albeit more limited, in the treatment of various infectious diseases.

A commentary on β-lactam combination therapy for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia.