Drug resistance may be accelerated by using broad-spectrum antibiotics

U.S. researchers say drug resistance may be accelerated by using broad-spectrum antibiotics too frequently when treating pediatric urinary tract infections.

Dr. Hillary Copp and colleagues at the University of California, San Francisco, investigated patterns of antibiotic use for pediatric urinary tract infections using national survey data from 1998 to 2007. On average, urinary tract infections account for at least 1.5 million outpatient visits by U.S. children annually.

The study focused on prescriptions of broad-spectrum antibiotics, which act against a wide range of disease-causing bacteria. Narrow-spectrum antibiotics are effective against more specific families of bacteria and cause less bacterial resistance since they are more targeted, Copp says.

The study, scheduled to be published in the June edition of Pediatrics, finds antibiotics were prescribed 70 percent of the time and broad-spectrum antibiotics were the prescription of choice one-third of the time. In addition, the use of a specific class of broad-spectrum antibiotics -- third-generation cephalosporins -- doubled during the study period.

"It is always concerning when we see a rise in a particular antibiotic class, as this can create drug resistance through antibiotic selection pressures," Copp, the study's lead author, says in a statement. "It is OK to prescribe broad-spectrum antibiotics if a doctor thinks the clinical scenario warrants it, but a urine sample should be obtained so therapy can be tailored accordingly and patients can transition to a more narrow-spectrum drug based on the urine culture results."