Objective: According to recent surveys, outpatient antibiotic prescribing in Germany has
been comparatively low among European countries. We assessed regional variation in
outpatient antibiotic use within Germany both for overall use as well as for specific antibiotic
drug classes. Methods: Prescription data for the year 2003 covering approximately 90% of
the total population were analysed using the ATC/WHO defined daily dose (DDD)
methodology. Data were expressed in DDD per 1,000 persons covered by the insurance …

A comprehensive small area description of regional variations in outpatient antibiotic
prescribing in Germany is lacking. Using the German Pharmacoepidemiological Research
Database (GePaRD), a claims database covering~ 20% of the German population, we
determined the age-and sex-standardized prescription rates of antibiotics (number of
outpatient prescriptions per 1000 persons/year). We calculated these prescription rates
overall and on the level of 401 German districts for the calendar years 2010 and 2018. In …