Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30395222›Full record

ArticleThe Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy2019

Magnitude and determinants of antibiotic dispensing without prescription in Spain: a simulated patient study.

Maruxa Zapata-Cachafeiro, María Piñeiro-Lamas, María C Guinovart, Paula López-Vázquez, Juan Manuel Vázquez-Lago, Adolfo Figueiras

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 31 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
31citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

31 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Non-prescription antibiotics dispensing for common infections using simulated patients.Exploratory research in clinical and social pharmacy · 2026
    Article
  4. Mapping 25 years of research on gut microbiota and antibiotic resistance: bibliometric insights and future directions.European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases : official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Maruxa Zapata-CachafeiroDepartment of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
María Piñeiro-LamasConsortium for Biomedical Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBER en Epidemiología y Salud Pública - CIBERESP), Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
María C GuinovartUnitat d'atenció farmacéutica, Regió sanitària Camp de Tarragona, CatSalut, Tarragona, Spain.
Paula López-VázquezDepartment of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
Juan Manuel Vázquez-LagoDepartment of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
Adolfo FigueirasDepartment of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Objectives: Excessive and inappropriate use of antibiotics increases antimicrobial resistance. The aim of this study was to determine the magnitude and determinants of antibiotic dispensing without prescription in Spain by the simulated patient technique. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with all the pharmacies in a region of north-west Spain (n = 977), between December 2016 and January 2017. Four actors visited the pharmacies simulating a respiratory infection. Four incremental levels of pressure were used to obtain an antibiotic. The education and sex of the person who was dispensing and the area where the pharmacy was located were recorded. The effect of these independent variables on the dispensing of an antibiotic without prescription (1 = yes, 0 = no) was modelled by logistic regression. Results: An antibiotic was obtained in 18.83% (95% CI = 16.5%-21.41%) of the visits. The area influenced the dispensing of antibiotics without a medical prescription, with a greater likelihood of dispensing in rural (OR = 1.79; 95% CI = 1.20-2.68) or semi-rural (OR = 1.66; 95% CI = 1.13-2.44) areas than in urban areas. No association was found with the sex or the training of the person who dispensed the antibiotic. In the pharmacies in urban areas, a lower level of pressure was needed to obtain the antibiotic. Conclusions: This study shows that one-fifth of the pharmacies still dispense antibiotics without prescription, especially under patient pressure. A rural setting has been identified as a risk factor for dispensing without prescription, so it must be taken into account for future interventions.

Indexed as

Computer SimulationAdultAnti-Bacterial AgentsCommunity Pharmacy ServicesCross-Sectional StudiesDrug PrescriptionsFemaleHealth Knowledge, Attitudes, PracticeHumansInappropriate PrescribingMaleMiddle AgedPharmacyRural PopulationSpainSurveys and QuestionnairesAnti-Bacterial Agents

Identifiers

PMID30395222
PMCPMC6337896

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

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.