Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28462635›Full record

ArticleGlobal health action2017

Antibiotic prescribing for upper respiratory infections among children in rural China: a cross-sectional study of outpatient prescriptions.

Zhitong Zhang, Yanhong Hu, Guanyang Zou, Mei Lin, Jun Zeng, Simin Deng, Rony Zachariah, John Walley, Joseph D Tucker, Xiaolin Wei

Abstract readMulticenter Study
In one paragraph

Article in Global health action, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 44 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

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44citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

44 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Tailored interventions to address determinants of practice.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Zhitong Zhanga China Global Health Research and Development , Shenzhen , China.
Yanhong Hub School of Public Health and Primary Care , Chinese University of Hong Kong , Hong Kong , China.
Guanyang Zouc School of Public Health , Sun Yat-sen University , Guangzhou , China.
Mei Lind Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control , Nanning , China.
Jun Zengd Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control , Nanning , China.
Simin Denga China Global Health Research and Development , Shenzhen , China.
Rony Zachariahe Medical Department, Operational Research Unit, Médecins sans Frontières , Brussels Operational Center , Luxembourg City , Luxembourg.
John Walleyf Nuffield Centre for International Health and Development , University of Leeds , Leeds , UK.
Joseph D Tuckerg Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases , University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , Chapel Hill , NC , USA.
Xiaolin Weih Dalla Lana School of Public Health , University of Toronto , Toronto , ON , Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundOveruse of antibiotics contributes to the development of antimicrobial resistance.

objectiveThis study aims to assess the condition of antibiotic use at health facilities at county, township and village levels in rural Guangxi, China.

methodsWe conducted a cross-sectional study of outpatient antibiotic prescriptions in 2014 for children aged 2-14 years with upper respiratory infections (URI). Twenty health facilities were randomly selected, including four county hospitals, eight township hospitals and eight village clinics. Prescriptions were extracted from the electronic records in the county hospitals and paper copies in the township hospitals and village clinics.

resultsThe antibiotic prescription rate was higher in township hospitals (593/877, 68%) compared to county hospitals (2736/8166, 34%) and village clinics (96/297, 32%) (p < 0.001). Among prescriptions containing antibiotics, county hospitals were found to have the highest use rate of broad-spectrum antibiotics (82 vs 57% [township], vs 54% [village], p < 0.001), injectable antibiotics (65 vs 43% [township], vs 33% [village], p < 0.001) and multiple antibiotics (47 vs 15% [township], vs 0% [village], p < 0.001). Logistic regression showed that the likelihood of prescribing an antibiotic was significantly associated with patients being 6-14 years old compared with being 2-5 years old (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.3, 95% CI 1.2-1.5), and receiving care at township hospitals compared with county hospitals (aOR = 5.0, 95% CI 4.1-6.0). Prescriptions with insurance copayment appeared to lower the risk of prescribing antibiotics compared with those without (aOR = 0.8, 95% CI 0.7-0.9).

conclusionsInappropriate use of antibiotics was high for outpatient childhood URI in the four counties of Guangxi, China, with the highest rate found in township hospitals. A significant high proportion of prescriptions containing antibiotics were broad-spectrum, by intravenous infusion or with multiple antibiotics, especially at county hospitals. Urgent attention is needed to address this challenge.

Indexed as

Rural PopulationAdolescentAnti-Bacterial AgentsChildChild, PreschoolChinaCross-Sectional StudiesDrug UtilizationFemaleHumansMaleOutpatientsPractice Patterns, Physicians'Prescription Drug OveruseResidence CharacteristicsRespiratory Tract InfectionsAnti-Bacterial AgentsAntibiotics prescribing behaviorbroad-spectrum antibioticsinjectable antibioticsmultiple use of antibioticstownship hospital

Identifiers

PMID28462635
PMCPMC5496075

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.