To identify Clinical Decision Support Software (CDSS) that have been implemented in hospital which aim to influence empirical antibiotic prescribing, and to establish their impact on antibiotic prescribing and patient outcomes.

Systematic review & meta-analysis.

MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and Embase were searched from their inception to February 2024.

Studies evaluating the impact of digital CDSS with the primary purpose of influencing initial empirical antibiotic prescribing for patients with acute infection in hospital.

Study characteristics, intervention characteristics and outcome data were extracted independently by two reviewers. Outcomes were grouped into four domains including clinical outcomes (mortality, length of stay, readmission rates), antibiotic appropriateness (guideline adherence, coverage of causative organism), antimicrobial stewardship and health economics. Risk of bias assessment was conducted using Risk of Bias In Non-randomised Studies - of Interventions for non-randomised studies and Cochrane Risk of Bias 2 for randomised studies. Outcome data with sufficient reporting and homogeneity were synthesised quantitatively using a random-effects meta-analysis; other outcomes were synthesised qualitatively.

15 full texts met the eligibility criteria after screening 7984 unique studies. Low-quality evidence suggested that implementation of CDSS was associated with lower mortality (OR 0.76, 95% CI 0.57 to 1.01) and improved adherence to antibiotic prescribing guidelines (OR 1.75, 95% CI 1.26 to 2.43). No change in length of stay or readmission rates were observed. Coverage of the causative organism was similar after CDSS implementation (OR 1.26, 95% CI 0.97 to 1.63). High-quality evidence supported the association between CDSS implementation and reduced broad-spectrum antibiotic prescribing.

CDSS can be used to reduce the unnecessary prescribing of broad-spectrum antibiotics. Further high-quality studies are required to establish whether their implementation also results in improvements in other outcomes.

CRD42024501185.