Volume 41, Number 2, April 2008
| | Adverse reactions to antibiotics in hospitalized Iranian children |
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Ghamar Taj Khotaei1, Fatemeh Fattahi2, Zahra Pourpak2, Zeinab Moinfar2, Farzaneh Mirza Aghaee2, Kheirollah Gholami3, Mostafa Moin2
1Department Infectious Diseases, Children’s Medical Center, 2Immunology, Asthma and Allergy Research Institute, and 3Department of Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Medical Sciences/University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
Received: October 4, 2006 Revised: November 11, 2007 Accepted: February 9, 2008
Corresponding author: Dr. Zahra Pourpak, MD, PhD, Immunology, Asthma and Allergy Research Institute, Medical Sciences/University of Tehran, No. 62, Dr. Gharib St., Keshavarz Blvd., Tehran 14194, Iran. E-mail:
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Background and Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of adverse reactions to antibiotics by organ system in hospitalized children in the infectious ward of a pediatric diseases referral center in Iran.
Methods: All patients treated with antibiotics were evaluated daily for the presence of ADRs during a 5-month period. For each suspected ADR, a specialized questionnaire was completed in order to obtain the information necessary for analysis of ADRs.
Results: Among 300 patients, 65 ADRs were seen in 36 patients (12%) during their hospitalization. Pneumonia was the most common reason for administering antibiotics; ceftriaxone and rifampin were the most frequently implicated antibiotics in ADRs. There was a significant relationship between the number of drugs used and the rate of ADRs (p=0.0001). The most commonly affected organ systems were skin and appendages, and the gastrointestinal system. Maculopapular rashes were the most frequent skin ADRs.
Conclusions: As antibiotics are the most frequently used drugs in children, and also because of significant relationship between the number of drugs used and ADRs, limited use and careful selection of type and dose of antibiotics as well as close clinical observation are very important in minimizing ADRs.
Key words: Adverse effects; Anti-bacterial agents; Child, hospitalized; Incidence; Risk factors
J Microbiol Immunol Infect. 2008;41:160-164.
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