Regional Variation in Outpatient Antibiotic Prescribing for Acute Respiratory Tract Infections in a Commercially Insured Population, United States, 2017.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Studies have shown that the Southern United States has higher rates of outpatient antibiotic prescribing rates compared with other regions in the country, but the reasons for this variation are unclear. We aimed to determine whether the regional variability in outpatient antibiotic prescribing for respiratory diagnoses can be explained by differences in prescriber clinical factors found in a commercially insured population.

Methods

We analyzed the 2017 IBM MarketScan Commercial Database of commercially insured individuals aged <65 years. We included visits with acute respiratory tract infection (ARTI) diagnoses from retail clinics, urgent care centers, emergency departments, and physician offices. ARTI diagnoses were categorized based on antibiotic indication. We

SUBMITTER: Bizune D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9905267 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature