Erythromycin stearate, 1.5 g, for the oral prophylaxis of streptococcal bacteraemia in patients undergoing dental extraction: efficacy and tolerance.
Erythromycin stearate, 1.5 g, was effective in reducing the prevalence of streptococcal bacteraemia following dental extraction when administered orally under supervision 1 h before extraction. Blood samples were collected from adult patients for culture and erythromycin assay 1 to 2 min after the dental procedure. High dilution techniques involving the use of 1 litre bottles of broth were used to inactivate erythromycin present in blood cultures. Viridans streptococci were isolated from 6 of 40 patients receiving erythromycin (15%) compared with 18 of 42 control patients (43%). The mean serum erythromycin concentration at the time of extraction was 3.7 mg/l for 34 patients receiving erythromycin who had negative blood cultures compared with 1.8 mg/l for the six patients given erythromycin who had viridans streptococci isolated from the blood. Both the 1.5 g erythromycin stearate and placebo oral doses were well tolerated in a double blind comparative study which included 109 adult dental patients.
D000284:Administration, Oral; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D004361:Drug Tolerance; D004917:Erythromycin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008875:Middle Aged; D011292:Premedication; D018805:Sepsis / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013290:Streptococcal Infections / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014081:Tooth Extraction / Q000009:adverse effects*
D004917:Erythromycin; C011462:erythromycin stearate