US Pharm. 2014;29(1):3.
Nashville, TN—A study by Vanderbilt University concluded that children who are hospitalized for pneumonia have similar outcomes whether they are treated with narrow-spectrum antibiotics, such as penicillin and ampicillin, or broad-spectrum antibiotics, such as cefotaxime and ceftriaxone. Data from 43 children’s hospitals on children aged 6 months to 18 years who were hospitalized for pneumonia from 2005 to 2011 were analyzed. Ten percent of children received narrow-spectrum therapy, and about 90% received broad-spectrum therapy. There were no significant differences in clinical outcomes or associated costs between the two treatment regimens. These findings are important because pneumonia is one of the most common reasons for hospitalization in U.S. children and because broad-spectrum antibiotics are often overprescribed, resulting in antibiotic resistance.
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