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Adverse reactions to antibiotics in hospitalized Iranian children

Ghamar Taj Khotaei1, Fatemeh Fattahi, Zahra Pourpak

  • 1Department of Infectious Diseases, Children's Medical Center, Medical Sciences/University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

Journal of Microbiology, Immunology, and Infection = Wei Mian Yu Gan Ran Za Zhi
|May 14, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) to antibiotics occurred in 12% of hospitalized children. Skin and gastrointestinal systems were most affected, highlighting the need for careful antibiotic selection and monitoring.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Pharmacology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Clinical Pharmacy

Background:

  • Antibiotics are essential in treating pediatric infections.
  • Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) to antibiotics are a concern in hospitalized children.
  • Understanding ADR frequency by organ system is crucial for patient safety.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the frequency of antibiotic-induced adverse drug reactions (ADRs) by organ system.
  • To identify common ADRs and implicated antibiotics in hospitalized pediatric patients.
  • To analyze the relationship between drug usage and ADR occurrence.

Main Methods:

  • Prospective daily evaluation of hospitalized children receiving antibiotics over 5 months.
  • Utilized specialized questionnaires to collect detailed information on suspected ADRs.
  • Analyzed ADR data focusing on organ system involvement and causative agents.

Main Results:

  • 12% of 300 patients experienced 65 ADRs.
  • Skin and appendages, and gastrointestinal system were the most affected.
  • Ceftriaxone and rifampin were frequently implicated; maculopapular rashes were common skin ADRs.

Conclusions:

  • A significant relationship exists between the number of drugs used and ADR rates.
  • Careful selection of antibiotic type, dose, and close clinical observation are vital.
  • Minimizing antibiotic use is important to reduce ADRs in pediatric populations.
Abstract

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