Outcome of Empirical Antibiotic Prescription for the Treatment of Community Acquired Pneumonia

Abstract

Background: The primary cause of illness and death in Bangladesh is community acquired pneumonia (CAP). Many hospitals in Bangladesh lack the resources to perform sputum cultures and sensitivity tests, making it difficult to identify the etiological agent of an infection. As a result, antibiotics are prescribed on a "empirical basis" rather than as part of a specific anti microbial treatment. The optimal antibiotic for treating CAP should be chosen using an empirical approach. Objective: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of various empirical antibiotic choices in the management of CAP. Methods: Eighty-two patients with CAP were included in this prospective observational research at a tertiary medical college hospital in Bangladesh. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were used to choose patients. Chest x-rays confirmed the diagnosis of CAP. The antibiotic was chosen based on clinical experience, which is an empirical method. The majority of patients received a combination antibiotic, whereas the remaining handful received monotherapy. The result served as an evaluation of the empiricism used in selecting the antibiotic. During the research, data were recorded in standardized formats. SPSS was used for the statistical analysis. Results: A total of 82 people were treated, and of them, 62 (or 76%) were men and 20 (or 24%) were women. The average age was 54.4% (9.6%). The round of antibiotics was supposed to last for a week. There were no unwanted medication reactions. No cases of lung abscess or parenchymal damage to the lungs occurred, and only one patient had paraneumonic effusion. Every single person made a full recovery. Conclusion: In many hospitals in Bangladesh, the choice of antibiotic for treating CAP is made on a "empirical" basis. Selecting an appropriate antibiotic requires better sputum culture and sensitivity testing in hospital labs.