Point of care CRP testing reduces antibiotic use in COPD exacerbations
According to a new UK study, the use of point of care CRP testing reduces the use of unnecessary antibiotic treatments in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbations without worsening clinical outcomes. The patients were randomly assigned to receive CRP point of care guided usual care or usual care alone. Results showed that fewer patients reported antibiotic use when their treatment decisions were guided by the CRP point of care testing. Furthermore, the reduction of antibiotic treatment in these patients did not compromise the patient-reported quality of life. Most antibiotics are prescribed in primary healthcare and many of these prescriptions do not benefit patients. This study shows that point of care CRP testing is an important solution for better targeted antibiotic prescribing.
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