Antimicrobial Stewardship in COVID-19 Patients: Those Who Sow Will Reap Even through Hard Times.

Background: Since the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic emerged, antimicrobial stewardship (AS) activities need to be diverted into COVID-19 management.

Methods: In order to assess the impact of COVID-19 on AS activities, we analyzed changes in antibiotic consumption in moderate-to-severe COVID-19 patients admitted to four units in a tertiary-care hospital across three COVID-19 waves. The AS program was introduced at the hospital in 2018.