Empiric antibiotic regimens for neonatal sepsis in Australian and New Zealand neonatal intensive care units

Abstract

Aim: Neonatal sepsis remains an important cause of morbidity and mortality, and requires prompt empiric treatment. However, only a minority of babies who receive antibiotics for suspected sepsis have an infection. Antimicrobial exposure in infancy has important short- and long-term consequences. There is no consensus regarding empirical antimicrobial regimens. Methods: The study included a survey of empiric antimicrobial regimens in all tertiary neonatal intensive care units in Australia and New Zealand in 2013–2014. Results: All 27 units responded. For early-onset sepsis, all units used a combination of gentamicin with either penicillin or ampicillin. For late-onset sepsis, the frequency of..