Antibiotics Overprescribed for Acute Bronchitis

Boston, MA— According to a new study, 7 out of 10 patients who seek treatment for acute bronchitis are prescribed an antibiotic. That’s a problem, however, because antibiotics do not actually help patients with this respiratory condition, which generally clears on its own after a few weeks. Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston analyzed patient data from two national surveys and found that despite treatment recommendations from the CDC, 72% of physicians in primary care practices and 69% in hospital emergency departments gave their patients some kind of antibiotic for acute bronchitis. There is concern in the healthcare community that unnecessary prescribing of antibiotics may be contributing to drug resistance.