Impact of Dermatologists’ Perceptions about Antibiotic Resistance on Antibiotic Prescribing for Acne

Background/objective: The use of antibiotics in the treatment of acne has been debatable especially when the abuse of antibiotics is strongly linked to emerging antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria. The aim of this study is to assess dermatologists’ knowledge about antimicrobial drug resistance and find out if their trends of antibiotic prescribing for acne would contribute to spread antibiotic resistance. Methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted on 51 dermatologists in the city of Amman, Jordan. The study sample was categorized to dermatologists from the private and public sectors and those who work in academia and those who don’t. The questionnaire collected demographical characteristics of dermatologists, patterns of antibiotic and acne drugs prescribing and causes of microbial antibiotic resistance and therapeutic failure. Answers were compared to the European guidelines for acne treatment 2012. Results: Total Percentage of deviation from the European standard guidelines was 56.94%. This percentage was almost the same for the four groups of dermatologists. Patterns of antibiotic prescribing varied between dermatologists. 43% of the sample acknowledged the occurrence of antibiotic resistant P. acnes in Jordan. 45.5% of dermatologists were unaware of the relation between antibiotics prescribing and the spread of antibiotic resistance. A large percentage of dermatologists (71%) attributed therapeutic failure to patient noncompliance. Opinions of dermatologists differed about factors resulting in antibiotic resistance. Conclusion: Ambiguous knowledge about antibiotic resistance among dermatologists affects their antibiotic prescribing patterns and highlights the need for awareness campaigns. High percentage of deviation from the European guidelines in treatment of acne stresses the need for national standardized therapeutic guidelines.