{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,28]],"date-time":"2026-10-28T19:12:40Z","timestamp":1793214760697,"version":"4.5.0"},"reference-count":31,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,6]],"date-time":"2025-08-06T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1754438400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Vet. Sci."],"abstract":"<jats:p>\n                    The rise in commercial poultry production in Nepal has led to inappropriate and haphazard use of antibiotics, contributing to antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This study aimed to identify the drivers influencing antibiotic use among small to medium-scale layer chicken farms in selected districts. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted among 180-layer poultry farmers in Makawanpur (\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u202f=\u202f45), Chitwan (\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u202f=\u202f30), Dang (\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u202f=\u202f46), and Pokhara (\n                    <jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>\n                    \u202f=\u202f59). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multivariable logistic regression analysis. Among the 346 responses, antibiotics were used for treatment (50.6%), prophylaxis (32.7%), growth promotion (4.6%), improving egg laying (2.6%), and viral infections (9.5%). Antibiotics were administered during brooding (33.8%), debeaking and vaccination (30%), disease epidemics (23.8%), transportation (7.5%) and shifting of houses (5%). Only 39.1% of decisions regarding antibiotic usage were based on laboratory reports; others relied on professional experience (25.8%), necropsy findings (23.4%), or telemedicine consultations (11.7%). Correct dose measurement using graduated dispensers was reported in only 27.2% of responses. Fluoroquinolones were the most used (22.2%), followed by tetracyclines (19%) and macrolides (17.6%). The multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that poor biosecurity scores and higher stress levels in birds significantly increased antibiotic use at the farm level. Our findings indicate that inadequate knowledge among poultry producers leads to inappropriate antibiotic use beyond therapeutic purposes. Poor biosecurity practices and stressors are major factors associated with increased antibiotic usage. Creating antimicrobial resistance awareness and promoting responsible use of antibiotics among farmers is essential. An integrated national AMR and food safety policy, including farmer education and strict guidelines, would be beneficial.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fvets.2025.1570822","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,6]],"date-time":"2025-08-06T04:12:34Z","timestamp":1754453554000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":4,"title":["Drivers and patterns of antibiotic use in small to medium-sized chicken farms in selected districts of Nepal"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Jeevan","family":"Adhikari","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sharada","family":"Thapaliya","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Reshmi","family":"Munakarmi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Pawan","family":"Acharya","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hom Bahadur","family":"Basnet","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Narayan","family":"Paudyal","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,6]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref2","author":"Singh","year":"2018"},{"key":"ref3","author":"Prasain","year":"2021"},{"key":"ref4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"437","DOI":"10.14202\/vetworld.2021.437-445","article-title":"Antimicrobial-resistant non-typhoidal salmonella enterica prevalence among poultry farms and slaughterhouses in Chitwan, Nepal","volume":"14","author":"Fowler","year":"2021","journal-title":"Vet World"},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"270","DOI":"10.54203\/scil.2024.wvj34","article-title":"The alternatives of antibiotics in poultry production for reducing antimicrobial 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Nepal","author":"Upadhyaya","year":"2020"},{"key":"ref10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"165","DOI":"10.5588\/pha.22.0014","article-title":"Antimicrobial resistance in bacteria isolated from the poultry production system in Nepal","volume":"12","author":"Pal","year":"2022","journal-title":"Public Health Action"},{"key":"ref11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"47","DOI":"10.3390\/tropicalmed6020047","article-title":"Antibiotic use in broiler poultry farms in Kathmandu valley of Nepal: which antibiotics and why?","volume":"6","author":"Koirala","year":"2021","journal-title":"Trop Med Infect Dis"},{"key":"ref12","year":"2025"},{"key":"ref13","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"50","DOI":"10.3126\/ijasbt.v10i1.41675","article-title":"Assessment of farmers\u2019 knowledge of antimicrobial resistance, their practice of antimicrobial usage and biosecurity status of poultry farms in Kathmandu Valley and Chitwan district, Nepal","volume":"10","author":"Dhakal","year":"2022","journal-title":"Int J Appl Sci Biotechnol"},{"key":"ref14","year":"2017"},{"key":"ref15","volume-title":"Antibiotic minimum inhibitory concentration against Salmonella in relation to the antibiotic usage at the layers poultry farms in Chitwan District","author":"Timilsina","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref16","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"675","DOI":"10.5455\/javar.2024.k817","article-title":"A review of antimicrobial usage practice in livestock and poultry production and its consequences on human and animal health","volume":"11","author":"Islam","year":"2024","journal-title":"J Adv Vet Anim Res"},{"key":"ref17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"75","DOI":"10.12968\/live.2019.24.2.75","article-title":"Changing farmer and veterinarian behaviour around antimicrobial use","volume":"24","author":"Morgans","year":"2019","journal-title":"Livestock"},{"key":"ref18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1154668","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2023.1154668","article-title":"Use of antibiotics in poultry and poultry farmers- a cross-sectional survey in Pakistan","volume":"11","author":"Habiba","year":"2023","journal-title":"Front Public Health"},{"key":"ref19","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e0258698","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0258698","article-title":"Factors influencing inappropriate use of antibiotics: findings from a nationwide survey of the general public in Malaysia","volume":"16","author":"Wong","year":"2021","journal-title":"PLoS One"},{"key":"ref20","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e0223115","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0223115","article-title":"Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of livestock and aquaculture producers regarding antimicrobial use and resistance in Vietnam","volume":"14","author":"Pham-Duc","year":"2019","journal-title":"PLoS One"},{"key":"ref21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1727","DOI":"10.14202\/vetworld.2022.1727-1737","article-title":"Assessing farm biosecurity and farmers' knowledge and practices concerning antibiotics and antibiotic resistance in poultry and pig farms in southern Togo","volume":"15","author":"Bedekelabou","year":"2022","journal-title":"Vet World"},{"key":"ref22","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2066","DOI":"10.3389\/fmicb.2018.02066","article-title":"Antibiotics, resistome and resistance mechanisms: a bacterial perspective","volume":"9","author":"Sultan","year":"2018","journal-title":"Front Microbiol"},{"key":"ref23","year":"2024"},{"key":"ref24","volume-title":"Evaluation of minimum inhibitory concentration and multi drug resistance profile of Salmonella isolated from layers poultry farm in Kaski District, Nepal","author":"Nepali","year":"2023"},{"key":"ref25","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1193","DOI":"10.3390\/antibiotics10101193","article-title":"Positive association between the use of quinolones in food animals and the prevalence of fluoroquinolone resistance in Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa: a global ecological analysis","volume":"10","author":"Kenyon","year":"2021","journal-title":"Antibiotics"},{"key":"ref26","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"232","DOI":"10.1128\/mmbr.65.2.232-260.2001","article-title":"Tetracycline antibiotics: mode of action, applications, molecular biology, and epidemiology of bacterial resistance","volume":"65","author":"Chopra","year":"2001","journal-title":"Microbiol Mol Biol Rev"},{"key":"ref27","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"106263","DOI":"10.1016\/j.prevetmed.2024.106263","article-title":"Patterns and drivers of antibiotic use in small-scale broiler 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meta-analysis","volume":"25","author":"Buckley","year":"2019","journal-title":"Clin Microbiol Infect"},{"key":"ref31","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.35251\/gjaas.2021.001","article-title":"Review of poultry production and poultry vaccine manufacture in Nepal","volume":"3","author":"Poudel","year":"2021","journal-title":"Glob J Agric Allied Sci"}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Veterinary Science"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fvets.2025.1570822\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,6]],"date-time":"2025-08-06T04:12:35Z","timestamp":1754453555000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fvets.2025.1570822\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,6]]},"references-count":31,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/fvets.2025.1570822"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fvets.2025.1570822","relation":{},"ISSN":["2297-1769"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2297-1769","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,8,6]]},"article-number":"1570822"}}