Suda KJ, et al. – This study was undertaken to assess trends in antibiotic expenditures by health care setting in the United States between 2010 and 2015. A decrease in antibiotic expenditures was observed from 2010 to 2015. The majority of antibiotic expenditures were in the outpatient setting, specifically community pharmacies. An increasing trend was noticed in expenditures for intravenous agents in the community that represented an increased use. Results thereby supported the importance of antibiotic stewardship efforts across the spectrum of healthcare.

Methods

• From January 2010 to December 2015, researchers extracted systemic (non–topical) antibiotic expenditures from the QuintilesIMS National Sales Perspectives database.
• The data represented a statistically valid projection of U.S. medication purchases.
• They used regression analyses to evalute trends in expenditures over the study period.

Results

• Over the six–year period, antibiotic expenditures totaled $56.0 billion; the majority (59.1%) of expenditures were related with the outpatient setting.
• Antibiotic expenditures lowered by 16.6% in 2015 ($8.8 billion) than in 2010 ($10.6 billion).
• Researchers also noticed a similar decrease in antibiotic expenditures in the community by 25.5% (p=0.05), but outpatient clinics and mail service pharmacy expenditures experienced significant growth (148% and 67% increase, respectively; p<0.01 for both).
• In 2015, 16.5% of antibiotic expenditures in the community were for parenteral formulations, an increase of 25%.