551. Antibiotic Use Among Surgical Patients in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU): The NO-More-AntibioticS and Resistance in Surgery (NO-MAS-R-S) Study


 
 
 Although antibiotic exposure among infants in the NICU is associated with short- and long-term adverse effects, the burden of antibiotic use in neonatal surgical patients has not been well described. The pediatric surgical team at Nationwide Children’s Hospital (NCH) provides all surgical consultations for central Ohio in the level 4 outborn referral NICU at NCH. Our objective was to quantify the total use of antibiotics in surgical NICU patients and thus inform antimicrobial stewardship opportunities.
 
 
 
 This was a prospective observational study of all infants in the NCH NICU who underwent pediatric surgical evaluation and received antibiotic therapy from 1/3/2022 to 4/29/2022. The pediatric surgery fellow informed the neonatal clinical pharmacist about all consultations and provided qualitative data on antibiotic prescribing (diagnosis, indication and reasoning for antibiotic selection, dosing, and duration) using a set questionnaire. Pertinent demographic maternal/infant data were obtained from the electronic health records.
 
 
 
 During the 4-month study period, 59 infants (median gestational age, 35 wks, IQR 28-35 wks; median birth weight, 2275 g, IQR 1085-3107 g) underwent surgical evaluation at a median postnatal age of 2 days (IQR, 1-12 d). 33 (56%) infants were male; 9 (22%) had antibiotic exposure for >48 hours before surgical consultation. Of the 59 infants, 28 (47%) had a surgical procedure performed (Figure 1) with indications for antibiotic use provided in Figure 2. 34 (58%) infants had antibiotics started by surgical team for a median treatment duration of 7 days (IQR, 5-14). Surgeons considered 74% (20/27) of antibiotic initiation courses to be evidence-based. Of the 59 infants, the most commonly used antibiotics were gentamicin (32%), ampicillin-sulbactam (29%), cefazolin (19%), and piperacillin-tazobactam (14%). The most frequent blood isolate was E. coli (n=4). Mortality was 2% (n=1) and was not infection-related. Figure 1Surgical procedures performed in 28 of 59 infants who underwent surgical evaluation.
 Figure 2 Indications for antibiotic use in 59 infants who underwent surgical evaluation
 
 
 
 Antibiotics were utilized in the majority of infants who had surgical consultation. Surgical prophylaxis was the main indication and may serve as a potential opportunity for ongoing surgical stewardship efforts.
 (Supported by Merck & Co research grant)
 
 
 
 Debra A. Goff, Pharm.D, FIDSA, FCCP, Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD): Grant/Research Support Alexandra K. Medoro, MD, Merck: Grant/Research Support Pavel Prusakov, PharmD, Merck Sharp & Dohme: Grant/Research Support.
