Reducing Antibiotic Use for Bronchitis

With reminders, doctors may prescribe fewer antibiotics for bronchitis, a study finds. Antibiotics kill bacteria. They won’t help bronchitis, which is caused by a virus. But doctors prescribe antibiotics for 70% of U.S. patients with bronchitis. The new study included 33 medical offices. They were randomly divided into 3 groups. One group received posters that pointed out when antibiotics should and should not be used. The second group received advice through the office’s electronic records system. The third group did not get either form of decision support. The study lasted 6 months, October through March. Researchers kept track of antibiotic prescriptions for bronchitis during the study period. They compared this to the same period in the last 3 years. In the offices that got the posters, prescriptions dropped from 80% of bronchitis cases to 60.7%.

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