Empirical Treatment of Gram-Negative Bacteremia in Children

Dual antibiotic therapy showed no survival advantage over monotherapy for empirical treatment of gram-negative bacteremia except in children with isolates resistant to multiple antibiotics.

In a previous retrospective study, culture-directed therapy with a β-lactam antibiotic plus an aminoglycoside showed no survival advantage over β-lactam monotherapy for pediatric patients with gram-negative bacteremia (NEJM JW Infect Dis Sep 8 2013). In a new retrospective study, conducted at the same hospital and focusing on empirical treatment of children with this condition, researchers compared β-lactam monotherapy with a β-lactam plus an aminoglycoside.

The researchers identified children with bacteremia who had been hospitalized between 2004 and 2012; 68% of the 714 children had received combination therapy, and 32% had received monotherapy. However, the combination-therapy patients were significantly more likely to have been immunocom…

Reviewing Author

Robert S. Baltimore, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsInfectious Diseases in Children

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesMember Committee on Rheumatic Fever, Endocarditis and Kawasaki Disease

Robert S. Baltimore, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsInfectious Diseases in Children

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesMember Committee on Rheumatic Fever, Endocarditis and Kawasaki Disease

Empirical Treatment of Gram-Negative Bacteremia in Children

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Reviewing Author