increasing fluid intake during respiratory infection has
unknown benefits and harms
• routine antibiotic treatment not recommended for
uncomplicated acute bronchitis (regardless of duration
of cough) unless pertussis suspected
—patient satisfaction with care for acute bronchitis
depends more on physician–patient communication
rather than on antibiotic treatment
—efficacy of antibiotics for reducing cough or overall
symptoms appears limited and antibiotics associated
with adverse effects
—antibiotics may reduce cough in children with
prolonged moist cough
—limited evidence for comparative efficacy for
different antibiotics
■ azithromycin might reduce clinical failures
compared with amoxicillin or amoxicillinclavulanate
in patients with acute respiratory
tract infection
■ roxithromycin may be as effective as amoxicillin
for lower respiratory tract infection
—strategies shown to reduce antibiotic use include
■ patient information handout
■ displaying of poster-sized letters
in examination rooms stating clinician
commitment to avoid inappropriate antibiotic
prescribing for adults with acute respiratory
infection
■ print-based and computer-assisted decision
support strategies for reducing antibiotic use
■ using diagnostic label of “chest cold” instead of
acute bronchitis reported to reduce dissatisfaction