[Utilization of antibiotics at the Arhus Municipal Hospital. A prevalence study]

The hospital charts of 689 patients in Aarhus Municipal Hospital were surveyed on a single day in the autumn of 1994. Antibiotics were administered to 22% of the patients. In the intensive care unit, 69% of the patients received antibiotics, while 24% of the surgical patients and 17% of medical patients received antibiotics. Twenty-seven percent of 203 prescriptions were given as prophylaxis, mainly to surgical patients. Sixty-four percent were prescribed as monotherapy. Penicillins constituted 41% of the total usage of antibiotics. Antibiotics were administered orally in 55%, intravenously in 37%, topically in 5% and rectally in 3%. The prescription was noted in the medical chart for 96%, the indication in 74% and the planned duration of treatment in only 58% of the cases. Information concerning previous allergic reactions to penicillin was noted for 7% of the patients. It is concluded that the usage of antibiotics and the microbiological findings in the departments should be evaluated regularly, and the antibiotic regime and the practice of prescription adjusted accordingly.