Antibiotic overuse in China: call for consolidated efforts to develop antibiotic stewardship programmes

On the basis of large-scale prescription data, Houyu Zhao and colleagues reported the first nationally representative investigation of antibiotic prescribing in China. We note the high rate of antibiotic prescription (40% for outpatient visits) for viral upper respiratory tract infections, which is inappropriate. The authors recommended a hospital antibiotic stewardship programme.