Antibiotic use in Brazilian hospitals in the 21st century: a systematic review

Introduction: This systematic review aimed to assess antibiotic use in Brazilian hospitals in the 21st century, as well as to understand the different drug utilization metrics adopted to assess the consumption of these drugs. Methods: We systematically reviewed five databases (MEDLINE [Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online], CENTRAL [The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials], EMBASE (R) [Excerpta Medica Database], Scopus [Elsevier's abstract and citation database], and LILACS [Literatura Latino-Americana e do Caribe em Ciencias da Saude]) for observational or experimental studies that assessed antibiotic utilization in Brazilian hospitals. The main outcomes were the drug utilization metrics and the consumption of antibiotics. Results: We included 23 studies, of which 43.5% were carried out in adult and pediatric care units, 39.1% in adult units, and 17.4% in pediatric units. Regarding the complexity of healthcare, 26.1% of the studies were performed in intensive care units. Two drug utilization metrics were used in these studies: the defined daily dose (DDD) and the percentage of antibiotic prescriptions. The most commonly used antibiotic classes were third-generation cephalosporins, carbapenems, fluoroquinolones, and combinations of penicillins when the DDD was the adopted drug utilization metric. Conclusions: Although few studies have been conducted, existing data indicate a high use of broad-spectrum antibiotics. We found that the lack of standardized antibiotic utilization metrics impaired the mapping of drug consumption at the national level.

Automated summary

This systematic review found a high use of broad-spectrum antibiotics in Brazilian hospitals in the 21st century. However, the lack of standardized antibiotic utilization metrics impairs the mapping of drug consumption at the national level.