Maksane Nitin, Langfeld Karen, Bhaskar J P, Sadhu Sanchayita, van Hasselt James
Global Medical Affairs, Mumbai, India.
Global Medical Affairs, Brentford, London, United Kingdom.
PLOS Glob Public Health. 2025 May 7;5(5):e0004558. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0004558. eCollection 2025.
This study aimed to assess the attitudes, and practices (AP) of general physicians (GPs) regarding antibiotic prescribing and antimicrobial resistance (AMR). A cross-sectional, descriptive AP study was conducted by surveying GPs treating community acquired respiratory tract infections (RTIs) across nine countries, including India, Pakistan, Algeria, Thailand, Vietnam, Egypt, Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia. A 29-item, web-based questionnaire was used to collect data between October-2023 and December-2023. Overall, 9249/14207 invited GPs responded, and 1008 responses were included in the analysis after quality control (3341 terminated due to eligibility, 4764 dropped out without completion, 136 excluded for quality concern). Of the included respondents, 78.8% were male and 98% were aged ≥35 years. 41% of GPs agreed, 33% disagreed, and 27% were neutral to questions regarding whether or not antibiotics are helpful in treating infectious respiratory diseases. In total, 62% of GPs agreed that AMR is a concern in their country and 63% agreed that prescribing antibiotics in primary care results in AMR. Pregnant women and patients with comorbidities were populations for whom selecting an appropriate antibiotic was most challenging; 38% of GPs found prescribing antibiotics to children was difficult. Difficulty in correlating susceptibility data (53%), limited availability of information on antibiotics (52%), and lack of availability of appropriate antibiotics (51%) were important challenges for appropriate antibiotic selection. Overall, 94% of GPs agreed that there is a need for frequent training on antibiotic therapy, with 33% and 49% recommending quarterly and biannual trainings, respectively. This study identified current practices, and possible gaps in appropriate antibiotic prescribing for RTIs. As an outcome, specific training needs could be identified to assist GPs with appropriate antibiotic prescribing in an outpatient setting.
本研究旨在评估全科医生（GP）对抗生素处方和抗菌药物耐药性（AMR）的态度及做法（AP）。通过对印度、巴基斯坦、阿尔及利亚、泰国、越南、埃及、摩洛哥、阿拉伯联合酋长国和沙特阿拉伯等九个国家治疗社区获得性呼吸道感染（RTI）的全科医生进行调查，开展了一项横断面描述性AP研究。在2023年10月至2023年12月期间，使用一份包含29个项目的网络问卷收集数据。总体而言，在14207名受邀全科医生中，有9249人做出回应，经过质量控制后，1008份回复被纳入分析（3341人因不符合资格而终止，4764人未完成而退出，136人因质量问题被排除）。在纳入的受访者中，78.8%为男性，98%年龄≥35岁。41%的全科医生同意、33%不同意、27%对关于抗生素是否有助于治疗感染性呼吸道疾病的问题持中立态度。总体而言，62%的全科医生同意AMR在其国家是一个问题，63%同意在初级保健中开具抗生素会导致AMR。孕妇和患有合并症的患者是选择合适抗生素最具挑战性的人群；38%的全科医生发现给儿童开具抗生素很困难。关联药敏数据困难（53%）、抗生素信息有限（52%）以及缺乏合适的抗生素（51%）是选择合适抗生素的重要挑战。总体而言，94%的全科医生同意需要经常进行抗生素治疗培训，分别有33%和49%的人建议每季度和每半年进行一次培训。本研究确定了当前的做法以及在为RTI开具合适抗生素方面可能存在的差距。作为结果，可以确定具体的培训需求，以帮助全科医生在门诊环境中进行合适的抗生素处方。
