title: Amikacin in the treatment of gram-negative pneumonia.
abstract: A clinical efficacy study of amikacin in the treatment of 15 adults with nonbacteremic, gram-negative bacillary pneumonia is presented. All patients had serious underlying illnesses (11 organic heart disease, five chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, one cancer); 11 had undergone major surgical procedures. All had required respiratory assistance during their hospitalization and all had recently received other antibiotics. Thirteen of 15 patients showed clinical improvement with amikacin therapy; the pathogen was also eradicated in 10 of the 13. The mean minimum inhibitory concentration of amikacin for the 17 isolated pathogens was 3.13 microng/ml. The mean peak serum concentration of amikacin was 17.7 microng/ml. No evidence of ototoxicity or nephrotoxicity was seen. Seventy-three case reports submitted to the manufacturer by multiple investigators of patients with gram-negative pneumonia, treated with amikacin, are also reviewed. All isolated pathogens were sensitive to both amikacin and gentamicin. Fifty-four (74%) of these patients showed improvement with amikacin therapy.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000583:Amikacin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005839:Gentamicins / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D007612:Kanamycin / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000188:drug therapy*
chemical_list: D005839:Gentamicins; D007612:Kanamycin; D000583:Amikacin