SINUSITIS
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University of Phoenix *
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Course
507
Subject
Medicine
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
Pages
2
Uploaded by MajorLyrebirdPerson900
I have suffered from sinus infections since childhood and have been treated many times with
antibiotics. Over the years I have noticed a difference in my provider’s willingness to
prescribe an antibiotic for an acute sinus infection. The topic of antibiotics for the treatment
of acute sinusitis interests me, and in my research, I came across several articles discussing
the importance of antimicrobial stewardship in patients with sinusitis.
Sinus infections are one of the leading causes of medical clinic visits and are associated
with medical costs of over two billion dollars annually (Subramani & Shankaran, 2021).
Often patients with a bacterial sinus infection experiencing symptoms such as facial or tooth
pain, fever, and yellow discharge are prescribed antibiotics. However, antimicrobial
stewardship is imperative as research including a case study from Rush University Medical
Center reveals how a patient that had been treated with a long duration of steroids and
antibiotics for a Covid-19 infection developed a severe multi-drug resistant bacterial sinusitis
infection (MDR) (Subramani & Shankaran, 2021).
In 2016 the CDC released the Core Elements of Outpatient Antibiotic Stewardship to guide
providers in outpatient settings in antibiotic stewardship by measuring antibiotic prescribing,
prescribing only when needed and educating patients on taking antibiotics only when
needed, minimizing the underuse of antibiotics through misdiagnosis, and ensuring the right
medication, dose, and time frame is selected when prescribing an antibiotic (Sanchez et al.,
2016). This framework was created in response to the staggering numbers of antibiotic
resistant related health care costs and improve patient outcomes, addressed the
commitment of the provider, action for policy and practice, methods to track and report
adverse effects, and educating patients about antibiotics (Sanchez et al., 2016).
Antimicrobial stewardship is imperative. Acute sinus infections account for many clinic visits
and are related to high antibiotic prescriptions, with numbers reaching as high as seventy-
five percent of patients even though bacterial infections are related to roughly one third of
the infections (Pedrotti et al., 2021). Three key points from the research article include the
importance the provider has in obtaining a thorough patient health history including
medications to be aware of any recent or extended antibiotic use, the value of educating
patients regarding antibiotic safety including completing doses, not skipping doses, or
saving doses for future illness, and ensuring proper diagnosing to avoid the overuse of
antibiotics if not warranted (Subramani & Shankaran, 2021). As future providers we must be
responsible for ensuring evidence-based practice including prescribing antibiotics
responsibly. Ethically, it is crucial we take the time to educate each patient to the level that is
understandable about their diagnosis, medications, and plan of care to ensure best patient
outcomes.
Pedrotti, C. H., Accorsi, T. A., Amicis Lima, K. D., Neto, A. S., de S. Lira, M. T., Morbeck, R.
A., & Cordioli, E. (2021). Antibiotic Stewardship in Direct-to-Consumer Telemedicine
Consultations Leads to High Adherence to Best Practice Guidelines and a Low Prescription
Rate. International Journal of Infectious Diseases, 105, 130-134.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2021.02.020
Sanchez, G. V., Fleming-Dutra, K. E., Roberts, R. M., & Hicks, L. A. (2016). Core Elements
of Outpatient Antibiotic Stewardship. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 65(6), 1-
12. https://www.cdc.gov/antibiotic-use/community/pdfs/16_268900-
A_CoreElementsOutpatient_508.pdf
Subramani, M., & Shankaran, S. (2021). Bacterial Sinusitis in the COVID-19 Era: A
Reminder for Antibiotic Stewardship. Cureus, 13(11).
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.19453
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