High rate of erythromycin and clarithromycin resistance among Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates from blood cultures from Providence, R.I.
Four (5%) of 81 recent isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae from the blood of adult patients but no isolates from pediatric patients (n = 51) were resistant (MIC, > or = 1 microgram/ml) to erythromycin. The MICs of clarithromycin were slightly lower than those of erythromycin, but there was complete cross-resistance. Routine testing and surveillance are needed to determine whether erythromycin resistance among S. pneumoniae isolates is increasing throughout the United States.
Lonks
J R
JR
Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
Medeiros
A A
AA
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016470:Bacteremia / Q000382:microbiology; D002648:Child; D017291:Clarithromycin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004352:Drug Resistance, Microbial; D004917:Erythromycin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008875:Middle Aged; D011008:Pneumococcal Infections / Q000382:microbiology*; D012237:Rhode Island; D013296:Streptococcus pneumoniae / Q000187:drug effects*
D004917:Erythromycin; D017291:Clarithromycin