International journal of antimicrobial agents
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Int. J. Antimicrob. Agents · Jul 2004
Successful treatment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus endocarditis with linezolid.
We report the successful treatment with linezolid of a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) endocarditis in a patient with a severe allergic reaction to glycopeptides. Linezolid is a drug with well-recognised activity against S. aureus and proved to be efficacious even in the unusual site of heart valves. This drug could be a good therapeutic choice when glycopeptides treatment is not feasible.
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Int. J. Antimicrob. Agents · Jun 2004
ReviewIntegrons and beta-lactamases--a novel perspective on resistance.
The understanding of microbial resistance to the beta-lactam class of antibiotics in the form of beta-lactamases has come a long way since the early discoveries of narrow-spectrum penicillinases. Integron-borne beta-lactamases co-occurring with a wide array of non-beta-lactam resistance genes, particularly pose an increasing threat to the nosocomial environment, giving rise to multi-drug resistant microbes with complex resistance patterns. Selection of potent beta-lactamases through the use of non-beta-lactam agents may be possible through integron-mediated resistance. It has become imperative that we should continuously strive to understand these complex mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance, not only to overcome them, but to avoid them from evolving further.
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Int. J. Antimicrob. Agents · Apr 2004
Do cultures contribute to optimisation of antibiotic therapy in the intensive care unit?
Obtaining diagnostic microbiological cultures before initiating empirical antimicrobial therapy is part of the diagnostic work-up of intensive care patients with a clinical suspicion of infection. However, it is unknown to what extent these cultures provide a microbiological cause of infection and to what extent antimicrobial therapy is influenced. During a 6-month period, all episodes of suspected clinical infection were analysed and categorised as non-microbiologically proven infection (non-MPI) or MPI. ⋯ Negative cultures were never followed by cessation of therapy, but the duration of treatment was significantly shorter for non-MPI. Forty-seven percent of respiratory tract infections were microbiologically confirmed and, based on culture results, empirical antimicrobial therapy could have been influenced in 11.5% of cases of respiratory tract infections. These findings provide aspects to evaluate and improve the diagnostic work-up of infections in the ICU.
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Int. J. Antimicrob. Agents · Mar 2004
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialUrinary bactericidal activity, urinary excretion and plasma concentrations of gatifloxacin (400 mg) versus ciprofloxacin (500 mg) in healthy volunteers after a single oral dose.
In an open randomised double-crossover study 12 volunteers (six men, six women) received a single oral dose of gatifloxacin (400 mg) or ciprofloxacin (500 mg) to assess urinary bactericidal activity (in eight intervals up to 120 h) and pharmacokinetic (PK) parameters (up to 36 h). Plasma concentrations and urinary excretion were determined by HPLC with fluorescence detection, and urinary bactericidal titers (UBT) by microdilution-method, using antibiotic-free urine of each volunteer. The mean maximum plasma concentration of gatifloxacin was 3.35 mg/l and that of ciprofloxacin 2.12 mg/l. ⋯ J. Antimicrob. Agents (2004)].
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Int. J. Antimicrob. Agents · Mar 2004
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical TrialGatifloxacin 200 mg or 400 mg once daily is as effective as ciprofloxacin 500 mg twice daily for the treatment of patients with acute pyelonephritis or complicated urinary tract infections.
The efficacy and safety of two oral dosing regimens of gatifloxacin were compared to ciprofloxacin in the treatment of complicated urinary tract infection in a randomised, double-blind multi-centre trial. One thousand one hundred and twenty-three adult patients with complicated urinary tract infection (70%) or pyelonephritis (30%) were initially enrolled, 1122 were treated. Of these, 824 were included in a modified ITT population: gatifloxacin 200 mg (274 patients) or 400 mg (280 patients) once daily or ciprofloxacin 500 mg twice daily for 5-14 days (269 patients). ⋯ The overall eradication rates of initial pathogens at EOT and EOS were 85.3% and 88.4% in the gatifloxacin 400 mg group; 84.1 and 90.1% in the gatifloxacin 200 mg group and 85.1 and 91.4% in the ciprofloxacin group. Both oral regimens of gatifloxacin were as effective as that of ciprofloxacin. All treatment groups showed a similar safety profile, nausea being the most frequently reported adverse event.