Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the pattern and general trend of antibiotic consumption during the year 2015 between an Italian and a Chinese hospital to evaluate the variability in the pathogens present and in the resulting inpatient antimicrobial prescriptions.
Methods: This study was carried out at the University Hospital of Sassari (UHS, Sassari, Italy) and at the First Hospital of Qinhuangdao (FHQ, Hebei Province, China) from January to December 2015. The study compares data of antimicrobial consumption, the kind of infections and the number and type of pathogens.
Results: The overall consumption of antimicrobial agents at the UHS was 77.3 DDD/100 bed-days, while at FHQ it was only 40.8 DDD/100 bed-days. At the UHS, Co-amoxiclav was the penicillin most largely used as well as a b-lactamase inhibitor (16.5% of the total). At the FHQ, instead, the most common drugs used were first and second generation cephalosporins (19% of the total). Infections of the respiratory, urinary and gastroenteric tract were the first three most diagnosed infections. The most isolated bacteria type was Escherichia coli for both hospitals (14% of the total).
Conclusions: The study highlights the variation in antimicrobial prescriptions of different geographical regions. The consumption data revealed a conspicuous use of these drugs at the University Hospital of Sassari, which was nearly twice as high than that found at the Chinese hospital. Antimicrobials were prescribed in both hospitals mainly for respiratory tract infections and Escherichia coli was the main cause of infections in both hospitals.