Drug prescribing pattern in upper respiratory tract infections among the pediatric population attending outpatient clinics in pediatric hospitals.

BACKGROUND

Upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) are one of the most frequent causes of childhood school leave and morbidity.

AIM: To study the present trend of medications' prescribing pattern utilized in URTIs among the pediatric population attending outpatient clinics in pediatric hospitals.

METHODS

This analytical observational cross-sectional research was conducted in 200 children aged 1-10 years with URTIs attending the pediatric outpatient clinics in pediatric hospitals, one of which is an educational hospital, from July 2018 to August 2020.

RESULTS

Most of the prescriptions in our study included antibiotics (116/58%). The most commonly prescribed antibiotic family was ampicillin/sulbactam or amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (53/26.5%), followed by first-generation cephalosporin (25/12.5%) and third-generation cephalosporin (20/10%). Macrolides and second-generation cephalosporins were prescribed less frequently, in 16 (8%) and 2 (1%) patients, respectively. Most of our study population (155/77.5%) was satisfied with their prescriptions, whereas the rest of the study population (45/22.5%) was unsatisfied.

CONCLUSION

Overprescription of antibiotics is a significant issue among clinicians in pediatric outpatient clinics. Stewardship of drugs, particularly antibiotics, is a must to prevent the development of drug resistance. Most cases of URTIs were treated in accordance with the existing national treatment guidelines.