Ridurre la prescrizione di antibiotici nelle cure primarie: dai test point-of-care in ambulatorio alla gestione della comunicazione senza rinunciare alle prove di efficacia

Strategies for reducing antibiotic prescriptions in primary care: from point-of-care tests in the clinic to managing communication without giving up evidence of efficacy The Point-of-care test (POCT) is a diagnostic test that can be performed in the outpatient clinic or at the patient’s bedside; the simplicity of execution and the availability of the result of POCT during the visit has led to a strong diffusion of these diagnostic aids. The results of the trial reviewed in the article of the month show a lack of effectiveness of a POCT, detecting 18 viruses and 3 bacteria, in reducing antibiotic prescribing in children visited for respiratory infection. The commentary explores other possible strategies, besides POCTs, to reduce antibiotic therapy in paediatric respiratory infections.