Outcomes of Single-Dose Empirical Antibiotic Treatment in Children With Suspected Sepsis Implemented in the Emergency Department

Objectives Implementing a single-dose empirical antibiotic (SDEA) strategy at the emergency department (ED) in children with suspected sepsis may improve outcomes. We aim to evaluate the outcomes of the SDEA strategy for children with suspected sepsis at the ED in a tertiary care center in Bangkok. Methods Children who met the predefined checklist screening criteria for suspected sepsis were administered single-dose intravenous cefotaxime 100 mg/kg, or meropenem 40 mg/kg if they were immunocompromised or recently hospitalized. The medical records of children diagnosed with sepsis and septic shock caused by bacterial or organ-associated bacterial infections before and after implementation of the SDEA strategy were reviewed. Results A total of 126 children with sepsis before and 127 after implementation of the SDEA strategy were included in the analysis. The time from hospital arrival to antibiotic initiation was significantly reduced after implementation of the SDEA strategy: median, 241 (110–363) minutes before versus 89 (62–132) minutes after (P
Source: Pediatric Emergency Care - Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research