Knowledge and use of antibiotics in Thailand: A 2017 national household survey

Chanvatik, Sunicha; Kosiyaporn, Hathairat; Lekagul, Angkana; Kaewkhankhaeng, Wanwisa; Vongmongkol, Vuthiphan; Thunyahan, Apichart; Tangcharoensathien, Viroj

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0220990

Cited by 52 publications

(72 citation statements)

References 22 publications

(19 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Like similar surveys from other LMICs, including those in urban settings, our data indicate high levels of antibiotic consumption among rural community members [17,[33][34][35][36]. Globally, national-level rates of antibiotic resistant microbes/infections are closely correlated with human antibiotic consumption rates [37,38].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 73%

“…This problem is faced by all similar surveys of rural LMIC communities, with levels of awareness varying substantially but typically being moderate to low [30][31][32], although comparisons are difficult. Some similar surveys do not initially check awareness and apparently rely on respondents who are not aware of antibiotics to select "don't know" type responses [19,33,34], which may lead to increased bias. Therefore, our results, and those of similar studies looking at antibiotic knowledge in more detail, highlight that there is a huge amount of work to be done on educating rural populations in LMICs about antibiotics and appropriate practices.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Antibiotic practices among household members and their domestic animals within rural communities in Cumilla district, Bangladesh: a cross-sectional survey

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Antibiotic resistance is a global threat to human health, and inappropriate use of antibiotics in humans and animals is widely considered to be a key driver of antibiotic resistant infections. Antibiotic use in humans and animals is growing rapidly in low- and, particularly, middle-income countries. However, there is little detailed understanding about practices related to the use of antibiotics in humans and animals within community settings in such countries. Here we aimed to understand the antibiotic practices of rural households across Cumilla district, Bangladesh, in relation to household members and their domestic animals. Methods In 2018 we conducted a cross-sectional survey using representative cluster sampling methods. We collected self-reported information from 682 female and 620 male household heads, with women also asked about their children’s antibiotic practices. Results Only 48% (95% CI: 40, 56%) of women and men had heard of antibiotics, and among those women and men who were aware of antibiotics and the children of those women 70% (95% CI: 64, 76%) reported having previously taken antibiotics, while among these individuals who reported previously taking antibiotics 21% (95% CI: 18, 25%) said they had done so most recently within the last month. Risky/inappropriate antibiotic practices in humans and animals were often reported. For example, among women and men who were aware of antibiotics and the children of those women 52% (95% CI: 40, 63%) reported previously taking antibiotics for a “cough/cold”, despite antibiotics being typically inappropriate for use against viral upper respiratory tract infections. Among poultry-owning respondents who were aware of antibiotics 11% (95% CI: 8, 15%) reported previously giving healthy poultry antibiotics, mainly for growth/prophylaxis, while among cattle-owning respondents who were aware of antibiotics and reported previously giving their cattle feed 20% (95% CI: 9, 37%) said the feed had contained antibiotics at least sometimes. Conclusions Our results highlight the need for context-adapted interventions at both the community level and the health systems level to reduce inappropriate antibiotic use among humans and domestic animals in rural Bangladesh. Successfully reducing inappropriate use of antibiotics among humans and animals is a required and critical step in tackling antimicrobial resistance.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 73%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Antibiotic practices among household members and their domestic animals within rural communities in Cumilla district, Bangladesh: a cross-sectional survey

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Moreover, a 5-year analysis on antibiotic resistance was reported even in high-standard hospitals, with several antibiotic resistances found particularly among patients who had a history of misusing antibiotics prior to being admitted to the hospital, especially those who had poor knowledge of antibiotic use [25]. Additionally, a study in Thailand reported that people who had higher educational levels and those with greater wealth were associated with having antibiotic drug resistance [8].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In 2016, Thailand launched a 5-year national strategic plan to reduce antimicrobial resistance (NSP-AMR:2017-2021) aimed at reducing antibiotic misuse by enhancing public awareness and reducing antibiotic resistance in the Thai population [6,7]. Commonly, Thai people are able to access antibiotics without prescriptions, such as through buying drugs from private drugstores or pharmacies, including from a small grocery in a community [8]. Moreover, self-medication is a common health behavior in Thai individuals [9].…”

Section: Page 3/25mentioning

confidence: 99%

Antibiotic resistance among the Lahu hill tribe people in northern Thailand: a cross-sectional study

Intahphuak¹,

APIDECHKUL²,

KUIPIAPHUM³

2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Antibiotic resistance is often reported and is of major concern as a public health problem. The hill tribe people in Thailand are considered populations vulnerable to antibiotic resistance due to their poor economic and educational status. The study aimed to estimate the prevalence of, the factors associated with, and the major species of bacteria involved in antibiotic drug resistance among the Lahu hill tribe people in northern Thailand. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted to gather information from participants between March and September 2019. A validated questionnaire was used for data collection. Participants who presented an illness related to infectious diseases were eligible to participate in the study and were asked to obtain specific specimens. Antibiotic susceptibility was tested by the Kirbey-Bauer disk diffusion test. Chi-square tests and logistic regression were used to detect the associations between variables at the significance level of α = 0.05. Results A total of 240 participants were recruited into the study; 70.4% were females, 25.4% were aged 30–40 years. More than half worked in the agricultural sector (55.4%) and had an education level of less than primary school (45.8%). The majority had urinary tract infections (67.9%) with two major pathogenic species of the infection: Escherichia coli (12.8%) and Enterobacter cloacae (8.0%). The prevalence of antibiotic resistance was 16.0%. Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae species were found to have multidrug resistance that was greater than that of other species, while ampicillin was found to have the greatest drug resistance. In the multivariate model, it was found that those who had poor knowledge of antibiotic use had a 2.56-fold greater chance (95% CI = 1.09–5.32) of having antibiotic resistance than did those who had good knowledge of antibiotic use, and those who had poor antibiotic use behaviors had a 1.79-fold greater chance (95% CI = 1.06–4.80) of having antibiotic resistance than did those who had good antibiotic use behaviors. Conclusion Effective public health interventions are urgently needed to reduce antibiotic drug resistance among the Lahu people by improving their knowledge and skills regarding the proper use of antibiotics and eventually minimizing antibiotic resistance.

show abstract

“…2 - 4 Half (50.3%) of household members who used antibiotics reportedly obtained the drugs from public hospitals and health facilities. 5 Antibiotic prescribing rates, however, tend to vary widely across hospitals. 2 Due to concerns regarding antibiotic overuse, an action research program aiming to change the perceptions and prescribing behavior of physicians, known as the “Antibiotic Smart Use (ASU)” program, was trialed in 2007-2012.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of a national policy advocating rational drug use on decreases in outpatient antibiotic prescribing rates in Thailand

Waleekhachonloet¹,

Rattanachotphanit²,

Limwattananon³

et al. 2021

Pharm Pract (Granada)

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objective: This study examined the effects of a national policy advocating rational drug use (RDU), namely, the ‘RDU Service Plan’, starting in fiscal year 2017 and implemented by the Thai Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), on trends in antibiotic prescribing rates for outpatients. The policy was implemented subsequent to a voluntary campaign involving 136 hospitals, namely, the ‘RDU Hospital Project’, which was implemented during fiscal years 2014-2016. Methods: Hospital-level antibiotic prescribing rates in fiscal years 2014-2019 for respiratory infections, acute diarrhea, and fresh wounds were aggregated for two hospital groups using equally weighted averages: early adopters of RDU activities through the RDU Hospital Project and late adopters under the RDU Service Plan. Pre-/post-policy annual changes in the prescribing levels and trends were compared between the two groups using an interrupted time-series analysis. Results: In fiscal years 2014-2016, decreases in antibiotic prescribing rates for respiratory infections and acute diarrhea in both groups reflected a trend that existed before the RDU Service Plan was implemented. The immediate effect of the RDU Service Plan policy occurred in fiscal year 2017, when the prescribing level among the late adopters dropped abruptly for all three conditions with a greater magnitude than in the decrease among the early adopters, despite nonsignificant differences. The medium-term effect of the RDU Service Plan was identified through a further decreasing trend during fiscal years 2017-2019 for all conditions in both groups, except for acute diarrhea among the early adopters. Conclusions: The national policy on rational drug use effectively reduced antibiotic prescribing for common but questionable outpatient conditions.

show abstract

Knowledge and use of antibiotics in Thailand: A 2017 national household survey

Cited by 52 publications

References 22 publications

Antibiotic practices among household members and their domestic animals within rural communities in Cumilla district, Bangladesh: a cross-sectional survey

Antibiotic practices among household members and their domestic animals within rural communities in Cumilla district, Bangladesh: a cross-sectional survey

Antibiotic resistance among the Lahu hill tribe people in northern Thailand: a cross-sectional study

Effects of a national policy advocating rational drug use on decreases in outpatient antibiotic prescribing rates in Thailand

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About