title: [Empirical treatment of febrile episodes in granulocytopenic patients with a combination of piperacillin and ofloxacin. Preliminary study].
abstract: We evaluated the efficacy and toxicity of piperacillin-ofloxacin as an empiric treatment of fever in patients with neutropenia. 24 febrile episodes occurring in 21 patients (mean neutropenia: 204/mm3) were treated. The neutropenia was due to an hematologic malignancy in 6 cases and to chemotherapy in 15 cases. Fever was related to septicemia in 4 cases, urinary tract infection in 1 case, other infectious sites without microbiological documentation in 11 cases, and was of unknown origin in 8 cases. Empirical therapy was started within 24 hours of the occurrence of fever greater than 38.5 degrees C with the combination of intravenous piperacillin (12 g/day in 3 divided doses) and oral ofloxacin (400 mg/day in 2 doses). The overall response rate was 86% (19/22) of evaluable cases, with an immediate success rate (apyrexia within 48 hours) of 46%. Of the 3 failures, one was bacteriologically documented and was due to a multiply resistant strain of Staphylococcus haemolyticus (to which both piperacillin and ofloxacin were resistant). The therapy was clinically well tolerated in all except 3 patients, in whom intolerance to intravenous piperacillin was observed, leading to discontinuation of the drug in 2 cases. More extensive and comparative trials should better determine the place of this piperacillin-ofloxacin combination as first-line treatment of febrile episodes in patients with neutropenia.
authors.affiliation: Service de Médecine Interne, Hôtel-Dieu, Nantes.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Raffi
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Feve
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tiab
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Brisseau
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Reynaud
authors.forename: J Y
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Grolleau
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000380:Agranulocytosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005334:Fever / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015242:Ofloxacin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010878:Piperacillin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011446:Prospective Studies
chemical_list: D015242:Ofloxacin; D010878:Piperacillin
vernacular_title: Traitement empirique des épisodes fébriles chez les patients granulopéniques par l'association pipéracilline-ofloxacine. Etude préliminaire.