Frequent unregulated use of antibiotics in rural Cambodian infants
Open Access
- 20 April 2020
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
- Vol. 114 (6), 401-407
- https://doi.org/10.1093/trstmh/traa020
Abstract
Background Despite a high prevalence of antibiotic resistance in Cambodia, few studies have assessed health-seeking behaviour and the use of antibiotics by caregivers of young children in Cambodia. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey of infants <12 months of age and their caregivers, assessing the frequency of reported illness, common symptoms and associated health-seeking behaviour through structured questionnaires administered by trained fieldworkers at a home visit. In a subset of these participants, ages 4-8 months with no acute malnutrition, we conducted a 3-month surveillance with fortnightly home visits. Results Of 149 infants (ages 1-11 months, 54.4% male) enrolled in the cross-sectional study, 76 (51.4%) reported symptoms of diarrhoea, fever or cough in the previous 14 d, with associated use of antibiotics reported in 22 (14.8%) infants. In 47 infants enrolled in the longitudinal surveillance, there were 141 reported episodes of illness in 44 (94%) infants with 21 infants (45%) reported to have received antibiotics in 32/141 (22.7%) episodes. Amoxicillin was the most commonly reported antibiotic in both surveys (68% [40/59 episodes reporting the use of antibiotics]). Conclusions Antibiotic usage is high in this population and appears to be occurring largely outside of the formal healthcare system.Funding Information
- National Centre for Global Health and Medicine (27-5)
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