Optimize Antibiotic Prescribing and Use to Reduce Adverse Drug Events in Children

In children, antibiotics are the leading cause of emergency department (ED) visits for adverse drug events, according to a new CDC-authored study published in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society. Healthcare providers, parents, and caregivers can help improve how antibiotics are prescribed and used to protect children from these risks, including severe allergic reactions.

Antibiotics save lives and are critical tools for treating infections, like those that can lead to sepsis, but they can lead to adverse drug events. The CDC study estimates that 70,000 children 19 years or younger visited the ED for antibiotic-related adverse drug events each year from 2011–2015. Many of these ED visits (41%) were made by children 2 years or younger. Most visits (86%) involved allergic reactions, such as rash, pruritus (itching), and angioedema (severe swelling beneath the skin).

Minimizing unnecessary antibiotic prescribing and improving use is the best way to reduce allergic reactions and other adverse drug events.

Healthcare providers can protect their patients and carefully weigh the risks and benefits of prescribing an antibiotic.

Parents and caregivers can remember that an antibiotic isn’t always the right tool to treat a child’s illness. Talk to your healthcare provider about the best way to treat your child’s illness. When antibiotics aren’t needed, they won’t help, and the side effects could still cause harm. Improving the way healthcare providers prescribe antibiotics—and the way patients use antibiotics—helps keep patients healthy now, helps fight antibiotic resistance, and ensures that these life-saving drugs will work when they’re needed most.

To learn more about optimizing antibiotic prescribing and use, visit: https://go.usa.gov/xUHTb.

Each year, nearly 1 in 400 children 2 years or younger visits the ED because of reactions to #antibiotics, according to new study. Minimize unnecessary prescribing to reduce allergic reactions & other adverse drug events. Read more: http://bit.ly/2MKCYha #BeAntibioticsAware