Antibiotics for acute bronchitis

Exposure to traffic-related air pollution and acute bronchitis in children: season and age as modifiers

“…The disease mainly occurs in children and may develop into chronic bronchitis, even further emphysema or pulmonary heart disease if it occurs repeatedly. Antibiotics are commonly prescribed to treat AB, but limited evidence on the clinical benefit to support the use of antibiotics for AB was observed in a recent review 18. And lower respiratory infections were the second cause of adolescent mortality all over the world in 2015 19.…”

Randomised controlled trial and health economic evaluation of the impact of diagnostic testing for influenza, respiratory syncytial virus and Streptococcus pneumoniae infection on the management of acute admissions in the elderly and high-risk 18- to 64-year-olds

“…97 Antibiotic prescribing has decreased in UK general practices in recent years mainly because there are fewer consultations for common respiratory infections, and partly because GPs are prescribing antibiotics less frequently for conditions that are primarily viral in aetiology. 98 There is a paucity of evidence showing benefit from antibiotic use in many acute respiratory conditions including acute bronchitis, 99 acute asthma exacerbations, [100][101][102] and in many cases of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive airways disease. [103][104][105] Although overprescription of antibiotics has led to the emergence and proliferation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, 106-109 a meta-analysis of 122 reports of CAP showed that approximately 6000 (18%) of 33,148 cases had a bacterial pathogen, with S. pneumoniae accounting for 73% of all cases and 66% of fatal cases.…”

The International Primary Care Respiratory Group (IPCRG) Research Needs Statement 2010

“…Antibiotics are of minimal benefit to the large majority of patients with the common cold, 256 sore throat, 257 and otitis media. 258 There may be a role for antibiotics in subgroups of patients with rhinosinusitis and acute bronchitis, 259 but clinical tools to identify the subgroups which may benefit from antibiotic treatment are largely lacking. Antimicrobial resistance is promoted by inappropriate use of antibiotics.…”