WHO-Point Prevalence Survey of Antibiotic Use Among Inpatients at a Core National Antimicrobial Consumption Network Site in North India: Findings and Implications.

Data on Point Prevalence Surveys (PPSs) in India are limited yet. We report findings of a PPS conducted in a core "National Antimicrobial Consumption Network site" under National Centre for Disease Control - WHO project "Point prevalence survey of antimicrobial consumption at healthcare facilities." A cross-sectional survey was conducted as per the "WHO methodology for PPS on antibiotic use in hospitals" in a tertiary care hospital in India in December 2021. Data were collected using predesigned and pretested questionnaire in separate hospital, ward, and patient forms. Eight hundred two inpatients (excluding ICUs) were covered out of whom 299 (37.3%) were on antibiotics with 11.7% receiving 3 or more antibiotics. Surgical prophylaxis (SP) (42.5%) and community acquired infections (32.8%) were the most common indications for antibiotic use. Of the patients, 92.5% received SP for more than 24 hrs. Most commonly prescribed antibiotics were penicillins with beta-lactamase inhibitors (22.3%). Of the total antibiotic prescriptions, 81.5% were from WHO essential medicines list and 12% from "not recommended" WHO AWaRe classification. Of the antibiotic prescriptions, 84.6% were parenteral. Few prescriptions complied with standard treatment guidelines (1.9%), documented indication for antibiotic use (11.6%), and stop/review date (4.4%) in notes. Double anaerobic cover accounted for 6.8% of the total prescriptions. Some identified areas for improvement were: formulation of hospital antibiotic guidelines, promoting culture of sending cultures, improvement in surgical antibiotic prophylaxis, decreasing use of antibiotic combinations and double anaerobic cover, fostering IV to oral switch of antibiotics, and ensuring effective communication among health care workers by documenting adequate information in medical notes.

Research on Antimicrobial Resistance in the Last 15 Years, India: A Bibliometric Analysis.

SUMMARY: Effective antimicrobials play an important element in modern medicine's success in treating infections, without which the patients would be put at risk. Along with the naturally occurring process of antibiotic resistance, the misuse/overuse of these antibiotics also leads to them losing their effectiveness. It limits the treatment options as the microbe that had previously been sensitive becomes resistant. This bibliometric study was performed by searching the Scopus database according to a specific search strategy. A total of 4200 articles were retrieved from the search, and after applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 1355 articles were included in the study. All of the bibliometric variables examined in this study revealed significant growth in this research field, especially during COVID-19, in terms of increasing scientific output and research collaboration. The study findings indicate an adequate quality and amount of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) research on microbiology and pharmacodynamics in India, whereas more research needs to be conducted on measures to tackle AMR, its public health, and policy aspects.

India Field Epidemiology Training Program Response to COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-2021.

The India Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) has played a critical role in India's response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. During March 2020-June 2021, a total of 123 FETP officers from across 3 training hubs were deployed in support of India's efforts to combat COVID-19. FETP officers have successfully mitigated the effect of COVID-19 on persons in India by conducting cluster outbreak investigations, performing surveillance system evaluations, and developing infection prevention and control tools and guidelines. This report discusses the successes of select COVID-19 pandemic response activities undertaken by current India FETP officers and proposes a pathway to augmenting India's pandemic preparedness and response efforts through expansion of this network and a strengthened frontline public health workforce.

Outbreak of ceftriaxone-resistant Salmonella enterica serotype Typhi-Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India, June 2018.

Objectives: In May 2018, a laboratory network for antimicrobial resistance (AMR) surveillance in Tamil Nadu, India, detected a cluster of Salmonella enterica serotype Typhi (S. Typhi) isolates resistant to ceftriaxone. We investigated to describe the epidemiology and identify risk factors for the outbreak. Methods: We conducted unmatched case-control studies. We defined a case as illness (fever with abdominal pain, diarrhea or vomiting) in a person with blood culture-confirmed ceftriaxone-resistant S. Typhi isolated between January 1 and July 4, 2018 in Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. We interviewed cases using a semi-structured questionnaire to identify common exposures to food, water and places visited. Results: We identified 7 cases (5 men) during March 25-June 8, 2018, median age 23 years (range: 12-42); all were hospitalized, none died. Eating at Restaurant A (odds ratio [OR]=22) and chicken gravy (OR=16) was associated with illness. Of the 10 workers at Restaurant A, stool culture from 8 did not detect S. Typhi; 2 did not consent to provide samples. Five water samples around the restaurant showed low or no residual chlorine content. Conclusions: The investigation highlights the value of AMR surveillance in detecting emerging pathogens and the need for timely investigations, along with strengthening food safety.