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Frequent unregulated use of antibiotics in rural Cambodian infants

BACKGROUND: Despite a high prevalence of antibiotic resistance in Cambodia, few studies have assessed health-seeking behaviour and the use of antibiotics by caregivers of young children in Cambodia. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of infants <12 months of age and their caregivers,...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Miyazaki, Asuka, Tung, Rathavy, Taing, Bunsreng, Matsui, Mitsuaki, Iwamoto, Azusa, Cox, Sharon E
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Oxford University Press 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7266683/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32307551
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/trstmh/traa020
Descripción
Sumario:BACKGROUND: Despite a high prevalence of antibiotic resistance in Cambodia, few studies have assessed health-seeking behaviour and the use of antibiotics by caregivers of young children in Cambodia. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey of infants <12 months of age and their caregivers, assessing the frequency of reported illness, common symptoms and associated health-seeking behaviour through structured questionnaires administered by trained fieldworkers at a home visit. In a subset of these participants, ages 4–8 months with no acute malnutrition, we conducted a 3-month surveillance with fortnightly home visits. RESULTS: Of 149 infants (ages 1–11 months, 54.4% male) enrolled in the cross-sectional study, 76 (51.4%) reported symptoms of diarrhoea, fever or cough in the previous 14 d, with associated use of antibiotics reported in 22 (14.8%) infants. In 47 infants enrolled in the longitudinal surveillance, there were 141 reported episodes of illness in 44 (94%) infants with 21 infants (45%) reported to have received antibiotics in 32/141 (22.7%) episodes. Amoxicillin was the most commonly reported antibiotic in both surveys (68% [40/59 episodes reporting the use of antibiotics]). CONCLUSIONS: Antibiotic usage is high in this population and appears to be occurring largely outside of the formal healthcare system.