Document Type : Original Article

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Authors

1 Department of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.

2 Associate professor in Infectious Diseases, Infectious Diseases Department, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

3 School of pharmacy, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

4 Assistant professor in Infectious Diseases, Infectious Diseases Department, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences.

5 Clinical Research Development Unit, Imam Reza Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

6 Department of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

Received: 06 December 2021                  Accepted: 03 February 2022                  Published: 08 March 2022

10.22034/MBT.2022.23052212                                                     XML Files


 

Abstract

Drug resistance is one of the greatest threats to the global health. Infection with antibiotic-resistant bacteria can lead to severe disease, increased mortality, and a higher risk of complications and hospitalization. Antibiotic resistance also increases the health care system’s total cost. The objective of this study is to evaluate the linezolid consumption pattern, as it is one of valuable antibiotics with limited approved indications, in three teaching hospitals over a period of 6 years. This article is a descriptive retrospective study in which all inquiries about drugs and used dosage in cases admitted to following hospitals, from 1st January 2011 to 31st December 2017, were retrieved from Hospital Information System database for analysis. A total of 97 cases (mean age 51.19 years) were studied. The prescribed dose of linezolid was between 130-1200 mg/d. The mean duration of treatment was 9.4 days. The dose and duration of treatment was appropriate in all cases. Various forms of side effects related to linezolid were observed in patients including: optic neuropathy (1%) and gastrointestinal complications (1%). No cases of serotonin syndrome were observed. Just 6.2% of patients received linezolid for inappropriate indication. This report shows that fortunately, in most of cases linezolid was prescribed properly regarding indication, dose and duration. However, further educational program and regulatory monitoring can improve the situation.

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