Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39099133›Full record

ArticleJournal of hospital medicine2025

Antibiotic Diversity Index: A novel metric to assess antibiotic variation among hospitalized children.

Jessica L Markham, Matt Hall, Samir S Shah, Alaina Burns, Jennifer L Goldman

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of hospital medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

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0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Jessica L MarkhamDepartment of Pediatrics, Children's Mercy Kansas City, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine, Kansas City, Missouri, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1616-7721
Matt HallDepartment of Pediatrics, Children's Mercy Kansas City, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine, Kansas City, Missouri, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7778-5887
Samir S ShahCincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7902-7000
Alaina BurnsDepartment of Pharmacy, Children's Mercy Kansas City, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Pharmacy, Kansas City, Missouri, USA.
Jennifer L GoldmanDepartment of Pediatrics, Children's Mercy Kansas City, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine, Kansas City, Missouri, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6628-8949

Funding

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) K08HS028845AHRQ HHS K08 HS028845Katherine B. Richardson Award through Children's Mercy Kansas City
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundDespite nationally endorsed treatment guidelines and stewardship programs, variation and deviation from evidence-based antibiotic prescribing occur, contributing to inappropriate use and medication-related adverse events. Measures of antibiotic prescribing variability can aid in quantifying this problem but are not adequate.

objectiveThe objective of this study is to develop a standardized metric to quantify antibiotic prescribing variability (diversity) within and across children's hospitals, and to examine its association with outcomes.

methodsWe performed a cross-sectional study of empiric antibiotic exposure among children hospitalized during 2017-2019 with one of 15 common pediatric infections using the Pediatric Health Information System database. Encounters for children with complex chronic conditions, transfers in, and birth hospitalizations were excluded. Using the Shannon-Weiner entropy index, we quantified antibiotic diversity for each infection type using the d-measure of diversity. Generalized linear mixed-effects models were used to examine the association between hospital-level antibiotic diversity and risk-adjusted length of stay and costs.

resultsA total of 79,515 hospitalizations for common pediatric infections were included. Antibiotic diversity varied within and across hospitals. Infections with low mean antibiotic diversity included appendicitis (mean diversity [mDiv] = 4.9, SD = 2.5) and deep neck space infections (mDiv = 5.9, SD = 1.9). Infections with high mean antibiotic diversity included pneumonia (mDiv = 23.4, SD = 5.6) and septicemia/bacteremia (mDiv = 28.5, SD = 12.1). There was no statistically significant association between hospital-level antibiotic diversity and risk-adjusted LOS or costs.

conclusionsWe developed and applied a novel metric to quantify diversity in antibiotic prescribing that permits comparisons across hospitals and can be leveraged to identify high-priority areas for local and national stewardship interventions.

Indexed as

Anti-Bacterial AgentsAdolescentAntimicrobial StewardshipChildChild, PreschoolCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHospitalizationHospitals, PediatricHumansInappropriate PrescribingInfantLength of StayMalePractice Patterns, Physicians'Anti-Bacterial Agents

Identifiers

PMID39099133
PMCPMC11698631

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