Gentamicin and antibiotic use in Norwegian hospitals: a study from 35 point-prevalence surveys, 2015 to 2023.
6 affiliations
- 1Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Advisory Services, Oslo Hospital Pharmacy, Oslo, Norway.
- 2Department of Infectious diseases, Oslo University Hospital.
- 3Institute of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
- 4Norwegian Centre for Antibiotic Use in Hospitals, Bergen, Norway.
- 5Department of Research and Development, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway.
- 6Antibiotic Resistance and Infection Prevention, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway.
Abstract
BACKGROUNDInappropriate and excessive use of broad-spectrum antibiotics drives antimicrobial resistance. Gentamicin, an Access antibiotic in the WHO AWaRe framework with low resistance potential, has long been recommended in Norway for empirical treatment of serious infections. However, real-world data on aminoglycoside use remain limited.AIMWe aimed to describe gentamicin and overall antibiotic use in Norway, including COVID-19 pandemic-related changes, and report the extent of gentamicin use across selected indications.METHODSData were obtained from patients ≥ 20 years from 35 national point-prevalence surveys (2015-2023) across 68 Norwegian hospitals.RESULTSAmong 241,546 hospitalised patients, 66,586 received antibiotics (yearly prevalence 26.9-28.1%), with the highest proportions in the 70-79 (26.4%) and ≥ 80 (23.4%) years age groups. Aminoglycosides, mainly gentamicin, ranked ninth among all antibiotic prescriptions. From 2021, third-generation cephalosporins (13-14%) surpassed β-lactamase-sensitive penicillins (12-13%). Gentamicin use increased from 4.1% in 2015 to 5.8% in 2023, mainly in combination with ampicillin, benzylpenicillin, or ampicillin plus metronidazole. Main indications were urinary tract, lower respiratory tract and intraabdominal infections, and sepsis. An increasing pre-COVID-19 pandemic trend in gentamicin use (β₁: 0.105; p < 0.001) was no longer observed after the COVID-19 outbreak was declared a global pandemic on the 11 March 2020 (β₃: - 0.112; p = 0.013).CONCLUSIONGentamicin use among hospitalised patients in Norway remains low but appears higher than in other European countries. Increases in gentamicin use pre-COVID-19 pandemic were no longer observed after COVID-19, supporting the need for surveillance and antibiotic stewardship to minimise unnecessary use of broad-spectrum antibiotics.
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BibTeX
@article{vukovic2026gentamicin,
title = {{Gentamicin and antibiotic use in Norwegian hospitals: a study from 35 point-prevalence surveys, 2015 to 2023.}},
author = {Marta Vuković and Siri Nordtveit and Brita Skodvin and Katerina Nezvalova-Henriksen and Hege Salvesen Blix and Jannicke Slettli Wathne and Kristian Tonby},
journal = {Euro surveillance : bulletin Europeen sur les maladies transmissibles = European communicable disease bulletin},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.2807/1560-7917.es.2026.31.42.2500969},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42921685},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Gentamicin and antibiotic use in Norwegian hospitals: a study from 35 point-prevalence surveys, 2015 to 2023.
AU - Marta Vuković
AU - Siri Nordtveit
AU - Brita Skodvin
AU - Katerina Nezvalova-Henriksen
AU - Hege Salvesen Blix
AU - Jannicke Slettli Wathne
AU - Kristian Tonby
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Euro surveillance : bulletin Europeen sur les maladies transmissibles = European communicable disease bulletin
DO - 10.2807/1560-7917.es.2026.31.42.2500969
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42921685
AB - BACKGROUNDInappropriate and excessive use of broad-spectrum antibiotics drives antimicrobial resistance. Gentamicin, an Access antibiotic in the WHO AWaRe framework with low resistance potential, has long been recommended in Norway for empirical treatment of serious infections. However, real-world data on aminoglycoside use remain limited.AIMWe aimed to describe gentamicin and overall antibiotic use in Norway, including COVID-19 pandemic-related changes, and report the extent of gentamicin use across selected indications.METHODSData were obtained from patients ≥ 20 years from 35 national point-prevalence surveys (2015-2023) across 68 Norwegian hospitals.RESULTSAmong 241,546 hospitalised patients, 66,586 received antibiotics (yearly prevalence 26.9-28.1%), with the highest proportions in the 70-79 (26.4%) and ≥ 80 (23.4%) years age groups. Aminoglycosides, mainly gentamicin, ranked ninth among all antibiotic prescriptions. From 2021, third-generation cephalosporins (13-14%) surpassed β-lactamase-sensitive penicillins (12-13%). Gentamicin use increased from 4.1% in 2015 to 5.8% in 2023, mainly in combination with ampicillin, benzylpenicillin, or ampicillin plus metronidazole. Main indications were urinary tract, lower respiratory tract and intraabdominal infections, and sepsis. An increasing pre-COVID-19 pandemic trend in gentamicin use (β₁: 0.105; p < 0.001) was no longer observed after the COVID-19 outbreak was declared a global pandemic on the 11 March 2020 (β₃: - 0.112; p = 0.013).CONCLUSIONGentamicin use among hospitalised patients in Norway remains low but appears higher than in other European countries. Increases in gentamicin use pre-COVID-19 pandemic were no longer observed after COVID-19, supporting the need for surveillance and antibiotic stewardship to minimise unnecessary use of broad-spectrum antibiotics.
SN - 1025-496X
SN - 1560-7917
ER -