Annals
Established in 1927 by the American College of Physicians
:
Advanced search
 
box Article
 arrow  Table of Contents                
space
 arrow  Full Text of this article
space
 arrow  PDF of this article
(PDFs free after 6 months)
space
 arrow  Figures/Tables List
space
box Services
 arrow  Send comment/rapid response letter
space
 arrow  Notify a friend about this article
space
 arrow  Alert me when this article is cited
space
 arrow  Add to Personal Archive
space
 arrow  Download to Citation Manager
space
 arrow  ACP Search                        
space
 arrow  Get Permissions
space
box Google Scholar
 arrow  Search for Related Content
space
box PubMed
Articles in PubMed by Author:
  arrow  Gonzales, R.
space
  arrow  Sande, M. A.
space
 arrow  Related Articles in PubMed
space
 arrow  PubMed Citation
space
 arrow  PubMed
space

POSITION PAPER

CLINICAL PRACTICE GUIDELINE, PART 2

Principles of Appropriate Antibiotic Use for Treatment of Uncomplicated Acute Bronchitis: Background

right arrow Ralph Gonzales, MD, MSPH; John G. Bartlett, MD; Richard E. Besser, MD; Richelle J. Cooper, MD, MSHS; John M. Hickner, MD, MSc; Jerome R. Hoffman, MD, MA; and Merle A. Sande, MD

20 March 2001 | Volume 134 Issue 6 | Pages 521-529

The following principles of appropriate antibiotic use for adults with acute bronchitis apply to immunocompetent adults without complicating comorbid conditions, such as chronic lung or heart disease.

1. The evaluation of adults with an acute cough illness or a presumptive diagnosis of uncomplicated acute bronchitis should focus on ruling out serious illness, particularly pneumonia. In healthy, nonelderly adults, pneumonia is uncommon in the absence of vital sign abnormalities or asymmetrical lung sounds, and chest radiography is usually not indicated. In patients with cough lasting 3 weeks or longer, chest radiography may be warranted in the absence of other known causes.

2. Routine antibiotic treatment of uncomplicated acute bronchitis is not recommended, regardless of duration of cough. If pertussis infection is suspected (an unusual circumstance), a diagnostic test should be performed and antimicrobial therapy initiated.

3. Patient satisfaction with care for acute bronchitis depends most on physician–patient communication rather than on antibiotic treatment.

Author and Article Information
space

From the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, Colorado; Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia; University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California; Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan; and University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah.

*After the primary author (Dr. Gonzales), authors are listed in alphabetical order.

In addition to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the principles outlined in this document have been endorsed by the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Physicians–American Society of Internal Medicine, and the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Annals of Internal Medicine encourages readers to copy and distribute this paper, providing such distribution is not for profit. Commercial distribution is not permitted without the express permission of the publisher.

Acknowledgments: External review has included feedback from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the American College of Physicians–American Society of Internal Medicine Clinical Efficacy Assessment Subcommittee; and representatives of the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Emergency Physicians, and the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Role of the Funding Sources: Partial support for the development of the Principles was provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and final approval by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of all manuscripts submitted for publication was required. Dr. Cooper is supported by a National Research Service Award (F32 HS00134-1) from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Requests for Single Reprints: Richard E. Besser, MD, Respiratory Diseases Branch (C-23), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30333; e-mail, rbesser{at}cdc.gov.

Current Author Addresses: Dr. Gonzales: Division of General Internal Medicine, Campus Box B-180, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, 4200 East Ninth Avenue, Denver, CO 80262.

Dr. Bartlett: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 1830 East Monument Street, Suite 463A, Baltimore, MD 21287-0003.

Dr. Besser: Respiratory Diseases Branch (C-23), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30333.

Drs. Cooper and Hoffman: UCLA Emergency Medicine Center, 924 Westwood Boulevard, Suite 300, Los Angeles, CA 90024.

Dr. Hickner: Department of Family Practice, Michigan State University, B-111 Clinical Center, East Lansing, MI 48824.

Dr. Sande: Department of Medicine (4C104), University of Utah, 50 North Medical Drive, Salt Lake City, UT 84132.




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
PediatricsHome page
S. B. Meropol, H. A. Glick, and D. A. Asch
Age Inconsistency in the American Academy of Pediatrics Guidelines for Acute Otitis Media
Pediatrics, April 1, 2008; 121(4): 657 - 668.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
PediatricsHome page
S. B. Meropol
Valuing Reduced Antibiotic Use for Pediatric Acute Otitis Media
Pediatrics, April 1, 2008; 121(4): 669 - 673.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
NEJMHome page
P. B. Cornia, B. A. Lipsky, S. Saint, and R. Gonzales
Nothing to Cough At -- A 73-year-old man presented to the emergency department with a 4-day history of nonproductive cough that worsened at night
N. Engl. J. Med., October 4, 2007; 357(14): 1432 - 1437.
[Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
NEJMHome page
R. P. Wenzel and A. A. Fowler III
Acute Bronchitis
N. Engl. J. Med., November 16, 2006; 355(20): 2125 - 2130.
[Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Ann Fam MedHome page
K. C. Stange
In This Issue: Prescribing Drugs: What Do Patients and Pharmaceutical Companies Really Want?
Ann. Fam. Med, November 1, 2006; 4(6): 482 - 483.
[Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Arch Intern MedHome page
B. C. G. Voordouw, M. C. J. M. Sturkenboom, J. P. Dieleman, T. Stijnen, J. van der Lei, and B. H. C. Stricker
Annual influenza vaccination in community-dwelling elderly individuals and the risk of lower respiratory tract infections or pneumonia.
Arch Intern Med, October 9, 2006; 166(18): 1980 - 1985.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
JRSMHome page
A. G Mainous III, S. Saxena, W. J Hueston, C. J Everett, and A. Majeed
Ambulatory antibiotic prescribing for acute bronchitis and cough and hospital admissions for respiratory infections: time trends analysis
J R Soc Med, July 1, 2006; 99(7): 358 - 362.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
ChestHome page
S. S. Braman
Chronic Cough Due to Acute Bronchitis: ACCP Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines
Chest, January 1, 2006; 129(1_suppl): 95S - 103S.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
JAMAHome page
M. H. Samore, K. Bateman, S. C. Alder, E. Hannah, S. Donnelly, G. J. Stoddard, B. Haddadin, M. A. Rubin, J. Williamson, B. Stults, et al.
Clinical Decision Support and Appropriateness of Antimicrobial Prescribing: A Randomized Trial
JAMA, November 9, 2005; 294(18): 2305 - 2314.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Fam PractHome page
A. Altiner, A. Knauf, J. Moebes, M. Sielk, and S. Wilm
Acute cough: a qualitative analysis of how GPs manage the consultation when patients explicitly or implicitly expect antibiotic prescriptions
Fam. Pract., October 1, 2004; 21(5): 500 - 506.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
JAMAHome page
R. Gonzales
A 65-Year-Old Woman With Acute Cough Illness and an Important Engagement
JAMA, May 28, 2003; 289(20): 2701 - 2708.
[Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
J. Clin. Microbiol.Home page
K. C. Carroll
Laboratory Diagnosis of Lower Respiratory Tract Infections: Controversy and Conundrums
J. Clin. Microbiol., September 1, 2002; 40(9): 3115 - 3120.
[Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
JWatch Infect. DiseasesHome page
Appropriate Antibiotic Use for Acute Upper Respiratory Infections in Adults
Journal Watch Infectious Diseases, April 27, 2001; 2001(427): 1 - 1.
[Full Text]


Home page
JWatch GeneralHome page
Guidelines for Antibiotic Use in Acute Respiratory Infections
Journal Watch (General), March 27, 2001; 2001(327): 1 - 1.
[Full Text]




 Home | Current Issue | Past Issues | In the Clinic | ACP Journal Club | CME | Collections | Audio/Video | Mobile | Subscribe | Tools | Help | ACP Online 

Copyright © 2001 by the American College of Physicians.