Interest of pharmacoepidemiology for the study of antibiotic drugs

Antibiotics (ABs) exposure of population is known as the main driving force for the emergence and spread of bacterial resistance in the community. Pharmacoepidemiology is the study of interactions between drugs and human populations, investigating, in real conditions of life, benefits, risks and use of drugs. Thus, pharmacoepidemiology is particularly of interest to monitor ABs use in both hospital and community settings. This can help to better understanding determinants of ABs use and to evaluate their impact. ABs use can also be a marker of an infection, which can be an ADR of other drugs. The development of pharmacoepidemiology should improve the "rational use" of ABs.