Antimicrobial prescribing and outcomes of community-acquired pneumonia in Australian hospitalized patients: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Objective We aimed to assess prescribing practices, compliance with guidelines, and outcomes for patients who were admitted to the authors’ institution with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Methods We performed a single-center retrospective cross-sectional study of adults with CAP presenting during the 2019 influenza season. CAP severity was assessed using the CURB-65 risk score. The effect of CURB-65 risk score use on the rate of appropriate antimicrobial prescribing was assessed using the chi-square test and reported as odds ratio (OR). Fisher’s exact test was used to assess the relationship between prescribing appropriateness and patient outcomes. Results Patients with low-risk CAP were most likely to be inappropriately prescribed antimicrobials (OR: 4.77; 95% confidence interval: 2.44–10.47). In low-risk CAP, the most common prescribing error was overuse of ceftriaxone. In high-risk CAP, the most common errors were ceftriaxone underdosing and missed atypical coverage with azithromycin. Overall, 80% of patients were considered to have been inappropriately prescribed antimicrobials. No effect on mortality was observed. Conclusions In this study, we found low use of CAP risk scores and low adherence to antimicrobial prescribing guidelines for CAP at the authors’ institution.