Abstract
Bacterial resistance to antibiotics creates a therapeutic challenge to clinicians when treating patients with a known or suspected infection. Increasing rates of resistance lead many clinicians to empirically treat patients with multiple broadspectrum antibiotics, which can perpetuate the cycle of increasing resistance and create an economic burden to society (see Chapter 4). Conversely, inappropriate initial therapy, defined as a regimen that lacks in vitro activity against an isolated organism, can lead to treatment failures that have negative patient outcomes.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Antimicrobial Resistance |
Subtitle of host publication | Problem Pathogens and Clinical Countermeasures |
Publisher | CRC Press |
Pages | 231-250 |
Number of pages | 20 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 9781420017236 |
ISBN (Print) | 9780824729417 |
State | Published - Jan 1 2007 |