Jewell MJ, Leyenaar J, Shieh MS, et al. - Researchers conducted this retrospective national cohort study to identify the rate of antibiotic prescribing in children hospitalised for asthma exacerbations and to describe patient and hospital factors correlated with receipt of antibiotics. From the Premier Alliance Database, children and adolescents (aged 2 to 17 years) admitted to hospital between October 1, 2015 and June 30, 2018 with an asthma exacerbation have been identified. They evaluated receipt and duration of antibiotic treatments during the hospital stay after excluding hospitalisations for which antibiotics appeared to have been justified. Twenty-three thousand one hundred twenty-nine hospital stays met criteria for inclusion; in 3,329 (14%) of these, antibiotics were prescribed without clear indication. Hospital rates that were prescribed varied widely (range 0%–95%), with 25% of hospitals prescribing antibiotics at a rate of 27.5% or more. Patient factors most closely associated with the receipt of antibiotics included the presence of a complex chronic condition and admission to an intensive care unit compared with a general medical-surgical bed. Hospitalization in general hospitals with minimal paediatric specialty support has resulted in an almost triple increase in antibiotic treatment. Such findings illustrate an opportunity to reduce unnecessary antibiotic exposure in children hospitalized with asthma, especially in general hospitals where three-quarters of children in the USA receive hospital care.