Background

Neonatal sepsis is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The evaluation of antibiotic prescription in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) is important for reducing inappropriate antibiotic use and minimizing the development of antibiotic resistance. Antimicrobial stewardship programs potentially promote a prudent use of antibiotics; however, the approach in NICUs is not yet optimal.

Objectives

The aim of our study was to evaluate antibiotic prescriptions for neonatal sepsis in a tertiary hospital in North Sumatera, Indonesia.

Material and methods

In our retrospective study, we collected data from medical records and enrolled 324 neonatal sepsis patients who received one or more antibiotics.

Results

Gentamycin and cefotaxime were the two most common antibiotics prescribed in the NICU (72.22% and 71.60%, respectively). However, high levels of resistance to gentamycin and cefotaxime were found among common pathogens circulating in the NICU (55.56% and 82.81%, respectively). Only 40.33% of the antibiotic prescriptions were appropriate: approximately 15.11% of the patients had received antibiotics with incorrect indications and 16.16% of the antibiotics had been administered without sufficient duration.

Conclusions

The appropriate use of antibiotic prescriptions in the NICU was low, which may lead to high mortality in neonatal sepsis patients. Continued evaluation of antibiotic usage by implementing antimicrobial stewardship programs in the NICU is important.