Abdul Karim, Moazzam Ali Atif, Maida Irshad, Fareeha Khalid.
Survey of antibiotic utilization at Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Rahim Yar Khan.
J Sheikh Zayed Med Coll Jan ;2(2):168-70.

Background: Irrational use of multiple antimicrobial agents in hospitals may cause the emergence of resistant microorganisms, as well as increase costs and unnecessarily exposure of patients to potentially dangerous drugs. Objective: To determine prescribing patterns of antibiotics among hospitalized patients, and to evaluate the antibiotic consumption. Materials & Methods: In this cross sectional study we analyzed the patient's drug charts in medical and surgical wards from July to August 2010 at Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Rahim Yar khan. Result: Record of 800 patients, was analyzed. Antibiotics were given to 650 patients (81.2%) with the mean age of 38.17 years. Route of administration was intravenous (84.4%), oral (2.3%) and both (13.2%). Patient receiving single antibiotics were 38.1%, while 61.8% received multiple antibiotics. Average number of antibiotics prescribed per patient was 1.8. The range of antibiotics used included 14 active ingredients with 21 different brands. Most commonly prescribed drugs were Ceftriaxone (65.3%), Metronidazole (49.3%) and Quinolones (31.6%). Conclusion: Multiple medications are a well-known potential risk factor in terms of patient's health. They increase the risk of drug-drug interactions and adverse drug reactions in all age groups. Moreover, irrational use of antibiotics may lead to emergence of microbial resistance. There is a high proportion of patients receiving multiple antibiotics in in-patient department of Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Rahim Yar Khan, and hence local guidelines should be established for use of antibiotics.

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