Large variation in antibacterial use among Norwegian nursing homes.

A cross-sectional descriptive study among Norwegian nursing homes was conducted in 2003 to examine pharmacoepidemiological characteristics of antibacterials in nursing homes and also to estimate their share of overall antibacterial use in Norway. Antibacterial data were collected for ATC group J01 antibacterials for systemic use, A07AA09 vancomycin and P01AB01 metronidazole in DDDs/y. The amount of drugs principally prescribed for urinary tract infections (UTI) were depicted and used as an indicator for the treatment frequency for UTI in the nursing homes.