National Cohort Study of Homebound Persons Living with Dementia: Antibiotic Prescribing Trends and Opportunities for Antibiotic Stewardship

Overall, 16 956 (42.5%) PLWD received 45 122 prescription fills. The antibiotic use rate was 20.7 DOT per 1000 DOHC. Telephone visits and advanced practice provider visits were associated with 30.9% and 42.0% of fills, respectively. Sixty-seven percent of fills were associated with diagnoses for conditions where antibiotics are not indicated. Quinolones were the most prescribed class (24.3% of fills). The overall median length of therapy (IQR) was 7 (7-10) days. Antibiotic use rates varied across regions. Within regions, the median annual antibiotic use rate decreased from 2014 to 2018. Antibiotic prescriptions were prevalent in HBPC. The scope, appropriateness, and harms of antibiotic use in homebound PLWD need further investigation.

2022 Epi Project
Datta R, Fried T, O’Leary JR, Zullo AR, Allore H, Han L, Juthani-Mehta M, Cohen A. National Cohort Study of Homebound Persons Living With Dementia: Antibiotic Prescribing Trends and Opportunities for Antibiotic Stewardship. Open Forum Infect Dis. 2022 Sep 3;9:ofac453. doi:10.1093/ofid/ofac453