Ten-year trends of antibiotics used for patients with pneumonia at long-term care hospitals in the Republic of Korea: An analysis based on national health insurance claims data.

Aim: To determine the trends in the usage of antimicrobial drugs by patients with pneumonia with prescriptions from long-term care (LTC) hospitals in the Republic of Korea.

Method: This retrospective study was conducted from 2011 to 2022 using the National Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service claim data in Korea. We calculated antibiotic usage expressed as a daily defined dose (DDD) per 1000 patients per day (DID).

Results: The number of patients with pneumonia in LTC hospitals increased by 2.7 times, from 30,000 in 2011 to 79,000 in 2022. Furthermore, antibiotic consumption per episode by patients with pneumonia in LTC hospitals increased from 17.14 DDD in 2011 to 18.11 DDD in 2022. Among the Access, Watch, and Reserve classification groups, the Watch group showed the highest usage; further, the Access group showed a decreasing trend, whereas the Watch and Reserve groups showed an increasing trend (p < 0.01). In the Watch group, the most commonly used antibiotic was J01CR05 (piperacillin and beta-lactamase inhibitor), followed in order by J01DD04 (ceftriaxone), J01MA12 (levofloxacin), and J01DH02 (meropenem). In the Reserve group, J01XB01 (colistin) and J01AA12 (tigecycline) were commonly used.

Conclusion: The antibiotics prescribed for pneumonia in LTC hospitals have continuously increased the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics. Accordingly, appropriate use of antibiotics in LTC hospital settings and assessment of antibiotics used are warranted.