Italy: information on unnecessary use of antibiotics 2018

This statistic displays the share of individuals who received information in the previous 12 months about not taking antibiotics unnecessarily, for example for a cold or the flu in Italy, in 2018. Antibiotics are medications that can kill or hinder the growth of bacteria which cause infection in people and animals. Antibiotic resistance occurs when there is a mutation in the bacteria's genes, however excessive use of antibiotics can also lead to the spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria. In 2018, 81 percent of respondents reported that they did not remember receiving any information about not taking antibiotics unnecessarily in the previous 12 months, this was above the European 28 average at 66 percent.