Misuse of Antibiotics in Dengue Fever—A Contributor to Antimicrobial Resistance?

Abstract Background Dengue, a vector-borne viral infection, is a concern in the tropical and subtropical regions across the world. The rampant use of antibiotics in dengue patients in India reinforces the anticipated threat of emergence of antimicrobial resistance. Aim We aimed to retrospectively investigate the prescribing pattern of antibiotics and compare the clinical status of dengue patients treated with and without antibiotics. Methods Between January 2016 and December 2020 period, data of patients who tested positive for at least 1 of the 3 screening tests (nonstructural protein 1, immunoglobulin M, or immunoglobulin G) were collected from patient medical chart, and we assessed the clinical outcome of dengue patients treated with and without antibiotics. Results Of 370 patients, 196 (52.97%) were managed with antibiotics and 174 (47.02%) were managed without antibiotics along with other supportive measures. A peak in the percentage of prescriptions with antibiotics was seen in 2019, 168 (85.71%) were prescribed with a single antibiotic with a majority of them, and 56.6% received third generation cephalosporins. Only 46 (23.46%) had bacterial co-infection while 150 (76.53%) had no co-infection. Thirty-five patients (70%) with dengue hemorrhagic fever were clinically managed with antibiotics compared with 50% patients in the “dengue fever” category. Only 8% of patients with mild dengue were given 2 antibiotics, whereas 13% with moderate dengue and 16% with severe dengue were prescribed with 2 antibiotics. Conclusions The increased number of prescriptions with antibiotics for a viral infection when not recommended by the guideline may lead to emergence of antibiotic resistance in hospitals as well as community.