Mariana Poppe1, Francisco Branco Caetano2, Rodrigo Sousa1, Paulo Oom1.
1Department of Pediatrics, Hospital Beatriz Ângelo, Loures, Portugal,
2Hospital Dona Estefânia, Lisboa, Portugal.
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Abstract
Objectives: We aim to characterize the follow-up management of urine culture results from a pediatric emergency department and thus quantify the unnecessary days of antibiotic therapy avoided due to this approach.
Materials and Methods: We conducted a retrospective study in a hospital in the metropolitan area of Lisbon. Data was collected through a dataset referring to pediatric patients who visited the emergency department and had a urine culture performed in 2021. We analyzed the rate of continuation, start, suspension and switch of antibiotics after acknowledgment of urine culture results.
Results and Discussion: 851 children and adolescents were included in the study. 71.5% of patients who were prescribed an antibiotic in the emergency department and had a negative urine culture were contacted to discontinue the antibiotic. 494 days of inappropriate antibiotic treatment were avoided, corresponding to a 44.5% reduction in the number of antibiotic treatment days for these patients.
Conclusion: Our follow-up management led to a reduction of unnecessary antibiotic therapy days, thus leading to better patient care and potentially contributing towards a decreased spread of antibiotic resistance. Limitations of the study include the lack of records of the patient’s medical history or clinical outcomes after discontinuation of antibiotic therapy.
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