To estimate the burden of antibiotic-nonsusceptible nonbacteremic pneumonia and sinusitis specifically due to Streptococcus pneumoniae in US adults (aged ≥18 years).
Key Findings:
16.4% of nonbacteremic pneumococcal pneumonia cases were nonsusceptible to ≥ 3 antibiotic classes (95% CI: 12.8–21.4).
19.0% of sinusitis cases were nonsusceptible to ≥ 3 antibiotic classes (95% CI: 14.8–24.9).
Estimated 243,521 outpatient visits for pneumonia (95% CI: 179,673–333,675) and 1,844,726 for sinusitis (95% CI: 1,070,763–2,904,089) annually.
10,155 pneumonia hospitalizations annually due to nonsusceptible strains (95% CI: 7,542–13,803).
31.2% of pneumonia and 10.5% of sinusitis cases were nonsusceptible to ≥ 1 outpatient first-line antibiotic.
Interpretation:
High proportions of antibiotic-nonsusceptibility in nonbacteremic pneumococcal pneumonia and sinusitis indicate a significant public health concern, suggesting the need for enhanced antibiotic stewardship and vaccination strategies to mitigate these risks.
Limitations:
Estimates based on data from 2016-2019 may not reflect current trends post-COVID-19, potentially affecting the relevance of findings.
Potential underreporting of cases in administrative datasets may lead to an underestimation of the true burden.
Conclusion:
The study highlights the substantial burden of antibiotic-nonsusceptible pneumococcal disease in adults, emphasizing the importance of vaccination and antibiotic stewardship to mitigate this issue.
