Trends in antibiotic consumption and bacterial resistance from 2008 to 2013 in two Intensive Care Units in Sicily, Italy

Background The overuse and misuse of antibiotics, has contributed to the selection, emergence and dissemination of resistant pathogens. The objective of the study is to provide an overview of changes in antibiotic consumption and resistance data in two Intensive Care Units (ICU1 and ICU2) during a six-years period, from 2008 to 2013. Methods The study used a laboratory-based surveillance approach. Antimicrobial resistance rates (RR) were calculated as the number of resistant isolates divided by the total …