Common errors in the treatment of intra-abdominal infections: the irrational use of antimicrobial agents


Submitted: 24 May 2016
Accepted: 6 June 2016
Published: 15 June 2016
Abstract Views: 1938
PDF: 960
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Authors

  • Belinda De Simone Department of Emergency and Trauma Surgery, University Hospital of Parma, Parma, Italy.
  • Fausto Catena Department of Emergency and Trauma Surgery, University Hospital of Parma, Parma, Italy.
  • Massimo Sartelli Department of Emergency and General Surgery, Macerata Hospital, Macerata, Italy.
  • Salomone Di Saverio Department of General Surgery, Maggiore Hospital of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
  • Federico Coccolini Department of General and Emergency Surgery, Papa XXIII Hospital, Bergamo, Italy.
  • Arianna Heyer Department of Medical Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, CA, United States.
  • Rodolfo Catena Said Business School, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.
  • Luca Ansaloni Department of General and Emergency Surgery, Papa XXIII Hospital, Bergamo, Italy.
Antimicrobial resistance (AR) is a global, emergent problem because an increasing numbers of serious community acquired and nosocomial infections are caused by resistant bacterial pathogens. It is a direct consequence of the excessive and irrational use of antibiotics. The use of antimicrobial agents – aimed to decrease morbidity and mortality rate related to intra-abdominal infections – is very high, often improper, in the Departments of General and Emergency Surgery and Intensive Cure Units. Source control and empiric antibiotic therapy have to be administrated as early as possible to decrease high mortality rates in patients with severe sepsis or septic shock and, in this, the general surgeon has a crucial role. Proper antimicrobial stewardship in selecting an appropriate antibiotic and optimizing its dose and duration to cure intraabdominal infections may prevent the emergence of AR and decrease costs for antibiotics.

De Simone, B., Catena, F., Sartelli, M., Di Saverio, S., Coccolini, F., Heyer, A., Catena, R., & Ansaloni, L. (2016). Common errors in the treatment of intra-abdominal infections: the irrational use of antimicrobial agents. Emergency Care Journal, 12(2). https://doi.org/10.4081/ecj.2016.6023

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