Can we achieve shorter antibiotic courses in primary care?

Improving antimicrobial stewardship in general practice

“…3 Evidence now supports the use of shorter durations for a range of infections, and short courses are therefore advocated in national guidelines. 4,5 AMS interventions and principles promote a focus on optimising duration of antibiotic therapy, 6 while the UK national plan for tackling antimicrobial resistance makes reference to reviewing the dose and duration of antimicrobial prescriptions (especially longterm or repeat ones) in primary care. 7 Various factors have been identified that influence physicians' decision-making processes for antibiotic prescription, such as those relating to the physician's characteristics and attitudes (eg fear, feelings of uncertainty, desire to satisfy patients); those due to the patient's condition (eg allergy), symptoms and anxiety; and factors relating to the healthcare system (eg patient health insurance, public health policies).…”

“…It is recognised that many patients are treated with defined courses of antibiotics (for example, five days, seven days, 10–14 days), but historically there has been little evidence to support the choice of treatment duration in most situations, and hence course duration has often been arbitrary 3 . Evidence now supports the use of shorter durations for a range of infections, and short courses are therefore advocated in national guidelines 4,5 . AMS interventions and principles promote a focus on optimising duration of antibiotic therapy, 6 while the UK national plan for tackling antimicrobial resistance makes reference to reviewing the dose and duration of antimicrobial prescriptions (especially long‐term or repeat ones) in primary care 7…”