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Introduction: Excessive antibiotics prescribing and overuse were observed during coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This may affect patients’ management and ongoing battle against antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

Objective: To assess the antibiotics prescriptions patterns to COVID-19 hospitalised patients based on disease severity.

Materials and Method: An analytical, cross-sectional study was conducted at Hetauda Hospital in Makwanpur, Nepal. Retrospective data were collected from 2021 May 17 to 2021 June 18 after ethical clearance among 400 COVID-19 patients admitted in hospital using convenience sampling. Variables examined were age, gender, disease severity, and antibiotics per prescription. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS v.25. Continuous variables were expressed as mean and standard deviations while categorical variables in frequency and percent. Fisher’s exact and Pearson’s Chi-square tests were used to test association between variables.

Result: Out of 400 patients, 234 (58.50%) were male. All study patients (100%) received one or more antibiotics on the survey date. Patients’ clinical condition was either categorised as mild, moderate, or severe upon admission (P <0.001). No statistical association could be observed between gender and disease severity (P = 0.974). Ceftriaxone, Azithromycin, Cepodoxime, Doxycycline, Meropenem, and other antibiotics were prescribed to 289 (72.30%), 267 (66.80%), 239 (59.80%),  204 (51.00%),  212 (53.00%), and  221 (55.30%) in hospitalised patients. 

Conclusion: It was observed that antibiotics were frequently used to treat COVID-19 patients, regardless of disease severity. Ceftriaxone, cepodoxime, and azithromycin were the most common. Evidence-based initiatives to promote prudent use of antibiotics for COVID-19 treatment may aid in minimising antibiotic misuse in Nepal.

Antibiotics; coronavirus disease 2019; prescription patterns; severity.