Antibacterial agents and the fight against antibiotic resistance: A real-world evidence analysis of consumption and spending by an Italian healthcare company

Abstract

The escalating bacterial resistance stands as an increasingly pertinent concern, particularly in the post-pandemic era where the use of antibiotics appears to be relentlessly surging, giving rise to profound apprehensions. The substantial utilization of last-generation penicillins and cephalosporins is anticipated to imminently result in the emergence of superbugs for which therapeutic solutions will be scarce. An analysis of antibiotic consumption in the hospital setting has been conducted in an Italian healthcare organization. Querying the internal management system facilitated the calculation of indicators and assessment of prescription trends. A comparison has been made between the first half of 2023 and the first half of 2022, to highlight the exponential growth in the consumption of beta-lactam antibiotics, with consumption doubling compared to the previous year's semester. Overall, considering the prescription averages, there is a prescribing growth of +29% concerning hospitalization and +28% concerning hospital discharge. However, it should be noted that the consumption of certain antibiotics such as sulphonamides and trimethoprim (-103.00%), tetracyclines (-54.00%), macrolides, lincosamides and streptogramins (-50.00%) and colistin (-13.00%) decreased. This real-world evidence analysis aimed to support the justified and comprehensible global concerns regarding bacterial resistance. The extensive consumption of antibiotics will inevitably lead to the development of increasingly drug-resistant bacteria for which no antibiotic may be efficacious. National programs addressing antibiotic resistance and the awareness of all healthcare personnel must be accorded the utmost priority to enhance consumption data and, consequently, safeguard future human survival.