Antimicrobial Use in Companion Animals: Assessing Veterinarians’ Prescription Patterns through the First National Survey in Chile

Abstract

Although the relationship between the use of antimicrobials and the development of resistant bacteria is well established, information about the use of antimicrobials in companion animals has been poorly described, which represents a risk to public health. The aim of this study was to describe the antimicrobial prescription patterns of Chilean companion animal veterinarians. A nationally distributed survey targeted at companion animal veterinarians was designed. The survey included questions about the veterinarian’s demographics, bacterial diseases treated, prescribed antimicrobials, and the use of laboratory diagnostic tools. Three hundred twenty-three responses were collected, most of the respondents were female (59.4%). The most frequently reported bacterial diseases were pyoderma (17.2%), followed by otitis and abscesses (7.4%). The antimicrobials most used corresponded with critically or highly important drugs for veterinary and human use, including β-lactams (65.3%), quinolones (36.2%) and tetracyclines (23.2%). Only 15% of the veterinarians reported the use of laboratory diagnostic tests, although 67% declared they were aware of the official antimicrobial classification schemes. Our results describe for the first time the usage of antimicrobials by veterinarian practitioners in Chile to treat different diseases in companion animals. The data presented here provide a baseline that could help to promote the implementation of clinical guidelines and regulations in order to improve current treatments.

Pet Owners and Antibiotics: Knowledge, Opinions, Expectations, and Communication Preferences

“…Compared with human medical practice, companion animal practice in Australia uses antibiotics relatively infrequently; antimicrobial exposure per life-year in dogs and cats is less half that of Australian people, and the proportion of dog and cat prescriptions representing the highest priority critically important antimicrobials (HPCIAs) is low [ 2 ]. While companion animal practitioners in several other countries use higher proportions of HPCIAs, particularly third-generation cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ], there is undoubtedly scope in all countries to improve antimicrobial use in companion animal practice [ 9 ].…”

A VetCompass Australia Study of Antimicrobial Use in Dog-to-Dog Bite Wounds (1998–2018)

“…They also found a 23.6% increase in the prescription rate of fluoroquinolones during the study period [ 16 ]. Amoxicillin–clavulanic acid was also the most frequent first choice for veterinarians in Chile, followed by enrofloxacin as the most common secondary antimicrobial when polytherapy was implemented [ 17 ]. The high level of empirical use of this β-lactam both in Australia and globally considerably increases the risk of development of β-lactamase resistance in bacteria and can select for resistance to aminoglycosides and fluoroquinolones [ 14 ].…”

“…The high level of empirical use of this β-lactam both in Australia and globally considerably increases the risk of development of β-lactamase resistance in bacteria and can select for resistance to aminoglycosides and fluoroquinolones [ 14 ]. It also increases the risk of horizontal transmission of these resistant bacteria to the human population [ 14 , 17 ].…”

Veterinary Practitioners’ Standpoints and Comprehension towards Antimicrobial Use—Are There Opportunities for Antimicrobial Stewardship Improvement?

“…In the current study, most respondents routinely conduct antibiotic susceptibility tests (AST) after failure in applied therapy, which is similar to other research results [ 37 , 69 ]. On the other hand, only 15% of the questioned veterinarians in Chile reported the use of laboratory diagnostic tests [ 70 ].…”