A Drug Utilization Study of Antimicrobial agents (AMAs) in the Intensive Care Units (ICUs) at Medical College Hospital of North India.

ABSTRACT

The APACHE (Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation) is a prognostic scoring system for classifying patients in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on the basis of physiological scores and chronic health status. The chances of survival increase with a decrease in score. AMAs play a major role in management of such illnesses and dramatically improve patient outcome. This study has been undertaken to study the AMA utilization patterns in ICUs. Data was collected from 49 patients admitted in Surgery and Neurosurgery ICUs after IEC approval. The average number of AMAs used was 3.36 per patient. The highest use of AMAs was 4.3 in group VI of APACHE scoring system. Cephalosporins was the most commonly prescribed AMA group. The preferred route of administration was intravenous route. Feedback from this study would help both the prescribers and institutional authorities to review their prescribing practices and modify if necessary to facilitate better health care delivery.