FebriDx
FebriDx® Can Reduce Unnecessary Antibiotics and Risks
UNNECESSARY USE OF ANTIBIOTICS
LEADS TO ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE,
CAUSING MORE THAN

33,000 DEATHS

IN EUROPE, AND

700,000 GLOBALLY1-2

ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
RESULTS IN COSTS
OVER
$30
BILLION
IN THE US ANUALLY3

Acute Respiratory Infections, Antibiotics, and Resistance

An acute respiratory infection, typically presenting as cough, cold, sore throat, and runny nose, is the most common single reason for doctor visits and antibiotic prescriptions.3-7 Up to 80% of all antibiotic prescriptions originate from primary care settings and 60% of those prescriptions are for acute respiratory infections.3-7

Antibiotic use is one of the major risk factors for developing antibiotic-resistant organisms, and acute respiratory infections are the most common reasons for prescribing antibiotics.8-9 Knowing whether your patient has a virus or bacterial infection could have a direct impact on the spread of resistant bacteria.10

90% of patients who present with and acute caugh have a syndrome caused by a virus.11

Antibiotics and Adverse Events

Routine use of antibiotics for acute respiratory infections should be evaluated for safety as well as efficacy. Up to 1 in 5 drug-related emergency department visits are due to adverse events from antibiotic use, and about 1 in 1,000 has a serious adverse event.3,5,12

Adverse events resulting from unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions increase medical burden, healthcare costs, and expose patients to additional risks.10

When evaluating a patient with symptoms of an acute respiratory infection, there is no evidence of benefit from antibiotics for the common cold or acute rhinitis in children or adults. There is evidence that antibiotics cause significant adverse effects in all ages when given for these conditions.13-14

An Example of Antibiotic Overuse: Clostridium difficile

Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) is a spore-forming bacteria that can produce a toxin causing symptoms ranging from mild diarrhoea to death.15-16 The estimated cost of this infection in Europe is €3 billion per year.17 It is associated with increased mortality and length of stay in hospitalized patients.17 The most important risk factor for C. difficile infection is previous antibiotic use.15-17 By eliminating unnecessary antibiotics and with continued antibiotic stewardship efforts, C. difficile rates can be reduced.15-16

Antibiotic Adverse Events14
adverse effects from antibiotic overuse.

Patient Satisfaction

Patients often insist on antibiotics. Since most coughs, colds, sore throats, and runny noses are caused by viral infections, antibiotics can often be prescribed unnecessarily.11-18 Using FebriDx® can help you explain why your patient may or may not need antibiotics, thereby improving patient satisfaction and confidence in their treatment recommendations. FebriDx® has a 99% Negative Predictive Value (NPV) to safely rule out a bacterial infection, preventing inappropriate antibiotic prescriptions.19

1. https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/news-events/33000-people-die-every-year-due-infections-antibiotic-resistant-bacteria. Accessed 2021 June 4.
2. O’Neill J, et al. Antimicrobial Resistance: Tackling a Crisis for the Health and Wealth of Nations; The Review on Antimicrobial Resistance: London, UK, 2014.
3. Harris AM, Hicks LA, Qaseem A. Appropriate antibiotic use for acute respiratory tract infection in adults. Ann Intern Med. 2016;165(9):674.
4. O’Conner R, O’Doherty J, O’Regan A, et al. Antibiotic use for acute respiratory tract infections (ARTI) in primary care; what factors affect prescribing and why is it important? A narrative review. Ir J Med Sci. 2018;187:969-86.
5. Dekker ARJ, Verheij TJM, van der Velden AW. Inappropriate antibiotic prescription for respiratory tract indications: most prominent in adult patients. Fam Pract. 2015;32:401-7.
6. Shallcross L, Beckley N, Rait G, et al. Antibiotic prescribing frequency amongst patients in primary care: a cohort study using electronic health records. J Antimicrob Chemother. 2017;72:1818-24.
7. Gulliford MC, Dregan A, Moore MV, et al. Continued high rates of antibiotic prescribing to adults with respiratory tract infection: survey of 568 UK general practices. BMJ Open. 2014;4:e006245.
8. Goossens H, Ferech M, Vander Stichele R, et al. ESAC Project Group. Outpatient antibiotic use in Europe and association with resistance: a cross-national database study. Lancet. 2005;357:579-87.
9. Costelloe C, Metcalfe C, Lovering A, et al. Affect of antibiotic prescribing in primary care on antimicrobial resistance in individual patients: systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ. 2010;340:c2096.
10. Barnes MN, Cleveland C, Williams L. Reducing inappropriate antibiotic prescribing for acute respiratory tract infections. U.S. Pharm. 2016;41(7):HS16-9.
11. Bisno AL. Acute pharyngitis: etiology and diagnosis. Pediatrics. 1996;97(6 pt 2):949-54.
12. Strauss RA. Treatment of postviral nonasthmatic cough with corticosteroids. J Allergy Clin Immunol: In Practice. 2013;1:404-6.
13. Rattinger GB, Mullins CD, Zuckerman IH, et al. A sustainable strategy to prevent misuse of antibiotics for acute respiratory infections. PLoS One. 2012;7(12):e51147.
14. Kenealy T, Arroll B. Antibiotics for the common cold and acute purulent rhinitis. Cochrane Data System Rev. 2013;6:CD000247.
15. Nordqvist C, Carter A. What to know about antibiotics. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/10278.php. Published January 2019. Accessed 2019 July 29.
16. Krutova M, Kinross P, Barbut F, et al. How to: Surveillance of Clostridium difficile infections. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2018;24(5):469-75.
17. Durovic A, Widmer AF, Tschudin-Sutter S. New insights into transmission of Clostridium difficile infection—narrative review. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2018;24(5):483-92.
18. Asensio A, Di Bella S, Lo Vecchio A, et al. The impact of Clostridium difficile infection on resource use and costs in hospitals in Spain and Italy: a matched cohort study. Int J Infect Dis. 2015;36:31-8.
19. Lumos Diagnostics internal data, 2019.