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Optimizing β-Lactam Antibiotic Therapy in the Critically Ill: Moving Towards Patient-tailored Antibiotic Therapy

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Annual Update in Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine 2013

Part of the book series: Annual Update in Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine ((AUICEM))

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Abstract

Infection is an extremely important problem in critical care medicine. In a recent point prevalence study, 71 % of over 13,000 patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) around the world received antibiotic therapy [1]. Sepsis alone is the leading cause of mortality in non-cardiac ICUs with up to 30 % of patients dying within one month of diagnosis [1, 2]; and the incidence of severe sepsis is increasing at a rate of around 10 % per year [3]. Adequate antibiotic therapy is one of the mainstays in the treatment of sepsis, and several studies have demonstrated that delayed and inappropriate treatment is associated with increased mortality. Timely administration and appropriateness of the spectrum of antibiotic therapy have, therefore, been massively promoted in sepsis guidelines, such as the Surviving Sepsis Campaign and comparable initiatives [4].

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Acknowledgement:

Mieke Carlier is funded by a fellowship from the Research Foundation Flanders

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Chemistry, Microbiology and Immunology & Department of Critical Care Medicine, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    M. Carlier & V. Stove

  2. Department of Critical Care Medicine, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    J. J. De Waele

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  1. M. Carlier
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  2. V. Stove
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  3. J. J. De Waele
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Correspondence to J. J. De Waele .

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  1. Erasme Hospital, Université libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium

    Jean-Louis Vincent Prof.

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Carlier, M., Stove, V., De Waele, J.J. (2013). Optimizing β-Lactam Antibiotic Therapy in the Critically Ill: Moving Towards Patient-tailored Antibiotic Therapy. In: Vincent, JL. (eds) Annual Update in Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine 2013. Annual Update in Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-35109-9_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-35109-9_9

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-35108-2

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