Trend of Antibiotic Usage for Hospitalized Community-acquired Pneumonia Cases in Korea Based on the 2010–2015 National Health Insurance Data

BACKGROUND: This study is to describe the changes in prescribing practices of antibiotics to treat community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in Korea during 2010-2015. METHODS: The claim database of the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service in Korea was used to select adult patients (≥ 18 years of age) admitted between 2010 and 2015, with the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision codes relevant to all-cause pneumonia for the first or second priority discharge diagnosis. The episodes with hospital-acquired or healthcare-associated pneumonia were excluded. Consumption of each antibiotic was converted to defined daily dose (DDD) per episode. The amount of antibiotic consumption was compared between patients with CAP aged < 65 years and those aged ≥ 65 years. The consumption of 4th CEP and carbapenem was doubled during 2010-2015. CONCLUSION: The prescription of broad-spectrum antibiotics such as 4th CEP and carbapenem to treat CAP increased in Korea during 2010-2015.