Rational use of antimicrobials

Abstract

The inadequate administration of antimicrobials may compromise the clinical response of the patient, increase the costs during hospitalization and contribute to the appearance of multiresistant bacteria. In this context, the use of rational antimicrobials is beneficial to the infected patient and also to the health institution. The prescription of this drug type must take in account the host, the infectious agent and the antimicrobial itself. Thus, its utilization must be based on the knowledge of the concepts of colonization, contamination and infection, notions of clinical microbiology, culture collection, and habitual microbiota of the human body, and mechanisms, action specter, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and side effects of the antimicrobials. The revision of these topics pursuits to provide subsidies to the choice of the most adequate antimicrobial to the type of infection, foreseen treatment time, failure criteria and clinical answer to the prescribed drug, besides guide possible change of therapy along the treatment.