Volume 27, Number 5—May 2021
CME ACTIVITY - Dispatch
Prescribing Antimicrobial Drugs for Acute Gastroenteritis, Primary Care, Australia, 2013–2018
Wen-Qiang He
, Martyn D. Kirk, John Hall, and Bette Liu
, Martyn D. Kirk, John Hall, and Bette Liu
Table 1
Proportion of cases of acute gastroenteritis for which antimicrobial drugs were prescribed overall and according to various characteristics, Australia, 2013–2018
| Characteristic | No. prescriptions/no. cases (%) | Adjusted odds ratio (95% CI) | p value* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall |
6,652/98,496 (6.8) |
||
| Age, y | |||
| <10 | 762/20,130 (3.8) | Referent | |
| 10–29 | 1,774/30,695 (5.8) | 1.56 (1.42–1.71) | <0.001 |
| 30–49 | 2,065/29,315 (7.0) | 1.87 (1.71–2.05) | <0.001 |
| 50–64 | 1,093/11,369 (9.6) | 2.46 (2.21–2.73) | <0.001 |
| >65 |
958/6,987 (13.7) |
3.27 (2.88–3.71) |
<0.001 |
| Sex | |||
| M | 3,098/47,892 (6.5) | Referent | |
| F |
3,554/50,604 (7.0) |
1.02 (0.97–1.08) |
0.41 |
| Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander | |||
| No | 5,076/74,978 (6.8) | Referent | |
| Yes | 145/2,516 (5.8) | 0.98 (0.82–1.17) | 0.82 |
| Unknown |
1,431/21,002 (6.8) |
||
| Concession card holder | |||
| No | 3,447/56,841 (6.1) | Referent | |
| Yes | 1,820/22,177 (8.2) | 1.04 (0.97–1.12) | 0.31 |
| Unknown |
1,385/19,478 (7.1) |
||
| Fever, temperature >38.5°C | |||
| No | 1,748/30,312 (5.8) | Referent | |
| Yes | 71/566 (12.5) | 2.75 (2.09–3.60) | <0.001 |
| Not recorded |
4,833/67,618 (7.1) |
1.14 (1.07–1.21) |
<0.001 |
| Fecal sample test requested | |||
| No | 4,832/86,085 (5.6) | Referent | |
| Yes |
1,820/12,411 (14.7) |
2.75 (2.58–2.92) |
<0.001 |
| Etiology | |||
| Not recorded | 5,820/79,799 (7.3) | Referent | |
| Viral | 342/17,896 (1.9) | 0.30 (0.27–0.34) | <0.001 |
| Bacterial | 483/790 (61.1) | 19.49 (16.66–22.80) | <0.001 |
| Parasitic |
7/11 (63.6) |
24.12 (6.22–93.59) |
<0.001 |
| Underlying conditions† | |||
| No | 5,314/85,970 (6.2) | Referent | |
| Yes |
1,338/12,526 (10.7) |
1.09 (1.00–1.19) |
0.04 |
| No visits to general practitioner in past year | |||
| 0–7 | 5,000/74,630 (6.7) | Referent | |
| 8–14 | 950/14,332 (6.6) | 1.02 (0.94–1.10) | 0.60 |
| >15 |
702/9,534 (7.4) |
0.95 (0.86–1.04) |
0.28 |
| Remoteness of practice | |||
| Major city | 4,421/69,557 (6.4) | Referent | |
| Inner regional | 1,172/16,438 (7.1) | 0.97 (0.90–1.04) | 0.35 |
| Outer regional or remote |
1,059/12,501 (8.5) |
1.21 (1.12–1.30) |
<0.001 |
| Year of diagnosis | |||
| 2013 | 1,238/15,845 (7.8) | Referent | |
| 2014 | 1,258/16,681 (7.5) | 0.92 (0.84–1.00) | 0.046 |
| 2015 | 1,165/16,912 (6.9) | 0.84 (0.77–0.92) | <0.001 |
| 2016 | 1,143/17,613 (6.5) | 0.77 (0.71–0.84) | <0.001 |
| 2017 | 1,008/16,995 (5.9) | 0.71 (0.65–0.78) | <0.001 |
| 2018 |
840/14,450 (5.8) |
0.71 (0.65–0.78) |
<0.001 |
| *Adjusted for all variables listed in the table. †Any medical history of diabetes mellitus, arthritis, or chronic kidney disease. |
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Page created: April 22, 2021
Page updated: April 26, 2021
Page reviewed: April 26, 2021
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