Decreased paediatric antibiotic consumption in France between 2000 and 2010

Background: Antibiotic consumption is one of the main causes of bacterial resistance to antibiotics and a major public health problem worldwide, especially in France. A national campaign was implemented in 2001 to reduce the inappropriate use of antibiotics in France, and guidelines for the management of respiratory tract infections were published in 2005. Methods: In this study, data on paediatric outpatient antibiotic use in France between 2000 and 2010 were derived from prescribing panels of the Permanent Survey of Medical Prescription, which analyzed prescriptions by 835 French general practitioners and specialists. Results: Overall, antibiotic prescriptions decreased by 57.2% between 2001 and 2010 in children aged 0 - 24 months, by 50.0% in children aged 25 months to 6 y, and by 45.8% in children older than 6 y of age. In the 3 age groups, the greatest reduction was for rhinopharyngitis (83.4%) and the lowest was for otitis (22.4%). Because otitis is one of the most common diseases in childhood, the proportion of antibiotic prescriptions due to otitis in children aged 0 - 24 months consequently increased from 22.5% in 2000 to 42.3% in 2010. Conclusion: Additional measures may be necessary to decrease antibiotic consumption related to otitis in young children.