💊 The 35 Countries With the Highest Antibiotic Use

Key Takeaways

• Iran has the highest rate of antibiotics use, last measured at 68 defined daily doses per 1,000 inhabitants (DDD) in 2022.
• A DDD is a typical adult’s one-day treatment (for a drug’s main use).
• A recent study found that nearly half of all hospital antibiotic prescriptions in Iran are considered irrational (not medically justified).
• Self-medication remains a major driver of antibiotic misuse, fueling the world’s highest rates of antimicrobial resistance.
• In comparison, the U.S. DDD stood at 22 (*from a different source), and Germany at 10.
• Wide disparities in antibiotics volumes suggest both overuse in some regions (raising antibiotic resistance concerns) and potential underuse in others (suggesting inadequate access to essential medicines).
• Visit the dataset tab for antibiotics use for all countries collected by the source.