[Strengths and weaknesses of guidelines: whether or not to prescribe antibiotics in general practice].

: Is non-compliance to guidelines regarding antimicrobial treatment in primary care a problem? On the one hand, individual variation in clinical problems warrants deviation from guidelines in some patients. But on the other hand, restrictive use of antibiotics is certainly necessary in primary care. Undertreatment of infectious diseases is not a major risk in primary care, but overtreatment is. Currently, steps are undertaken in the Netherlands to enhance antibiotic stewardship.