Azithromycin Has Been Flying Off the Shelves: The Italian Lesson Learnt from Improper Use of Antibiotics against COVID-19

Pietro Ferrara; Luciana Albano

doi:10.3390/medicina58030363

Azithromycin Has Been Flying Off the Shelves: The Italian Lesson Learnt from Improper Use of Antibiotics against COVID-19

Medicina (Kaunas). 2022 Mar 1;58(3):363. doi: 10.3390/medicina58030363.

Authors

Pietro Ferrara¹, Luciana Albano²

Affiliations

¹ Center for Public Health Research, School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Milan-Bicocca, 20900 Monza, Italy.
² Department of Experimental Medicine, School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", 80138 Naples, Italy.

Abstract

The warning by the Italian Medicines Agency on the high shortage of azithromycin in the country in January 2022 represents a paradigmatic lesson learnt from improper use of antibiotics during COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; Italy; SARS-CoV-2; azithromycin; inappropriate prescribing; syndemic.

MeSH terms

Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use
Azithromycin* / therapeutic use
COVID-19 Drug Treatment*
Humans
Italy / epidemiology
Pandemics

Substances

Anti-Bacterial Agents
Azithromycin