Appropriate Use of Antibiotics for the Management of Respiratory Tract Infections

Lower Respiratory Tract Infections (LRTIs) and Upper Respiratory Tract Infections (URTIs) cause high morbidity and mortality worldwide. Lower respiratory tract infections are generally more serious than upper infections. Antibiotics are often inappropriately prescribed for patients with RTI. Inappropriate utilization of antibiotics, specifically the broad spectrum in respiratory tract infection, results in resistance to antibiotics. The common use of antibiotics is the prime reason for the spread of drug-resistant bacterial strains, which not only results in expensive treatments but also causes a high rate of morbidity and mortality due to undesired adverse effects of the drug. A literature survey was performed using PubMed, Science Direct, and Web of Science search engines. One hundred forty-five papers were retrieved, and more than 100 were included in this review. This article describes the overview and diagnosis of respiratory tract infections and the plethora of antibiotics that have been used in the management of RTIs.