Azithromycin in the treatment of Legionella pneumonia requiring hospitalization.

Abstract

Azithromycin is highly active against Legionella pneumophila and has been shown to be efficacious in animal models and in clinical studies of patients with legionnaires disease. This open, prospective, multicenter trial evaluated azithromycin for the treatment of legionnaires disease. Twenty-five hospitalized patients with community-acquired pneumonia and a positive result of a L. pneumophila serogroup 1 urinary antigen assay received monotherapy with intravenous azithromycin (500 mg/day) for 2-7 days, followed by oral azithromycin (1500 mg administered over the course of 3 or 5 days). The mean total duration of intravenous plus oral therapy was 7.92 days. The overall cure rate among clinically evaluable patients was 95% (20 of 21 patients) at 10-14 days after therapy and 96% (22 of 23 patients) at 4-6 weeks after therapy. The results of this study support previously reported data demonstrating that azithromycin is both safe and efficacious for the treatment of hospitalized patients with legionnaires disease.

• Authors: Joseph F Plouffe, Robert F Breiman, Barry S Fields, Mark Herbert, Jill Inverso, Charles Knirsch, Antonia Kolokathis, Thomas J Marrie, Lindsay Nicolle, Douglas B Schwartz
• Journal: Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (Clin Infect Dis) Vol. 37 Issue 11 Pg. 1475-80 (Dec 01 2003) ISSN: 1537-6591 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 14614670 (Publication Type: Clinical Trial, Controlled Clinical Trial, Journal Article, Multicenter Study, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Anti-Bacterial Agents
• Azithromycin

Topics

• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Anti-Bacterial Agents (adverse effects, therapeutic use)
• Azithromycin (adverse effects, therapeutic use)
• Community-Acquired Infections (drug therapy)
• Female
• Humans
• Legionella
• Legionnaires' Disease (drug therapy)
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Treatment Outcome