Susceptibility survey of piperacillin/tazobactam and some beta-lactam comparators in Italy.
From September 1994 to March 1995 an Italian multicenter in vitro study to evaluate the susceptibility of piperacillin/tazobactam compared with that of imipenem, ceftazidime, ceftazidime, ceftriaxone, cefotaxime and ampicillin/sulbactam against aerobic bacterial pathogens isolated in 132 different hospitals, was undertaken. In total, 26,732 isolates were collected but only 25,266 aerobic bacteria were able to be evaluated (16,863 Gram-negative and 8,403 Gram-positive). Escherichia coli was the most frequent pathogen isolated (25.9%) followed by Staphylococcus aureus (14.9%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (13.9%), Enterococcus faecalis (8.2%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (5.9%). Piperacillin/tazobactam had a general spectrum of activity (84.8% susceptible strains) comparable to imipenem (87.9%), and was distinctly greater than ceftazidime (71.1%).
Stefani
S
S
Institute of Microbiology, University of Catania, Italy.
Bonfiglio
G
G
Bianchi
C
C
Zollo
A
A
Nicoletti
G
G
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000382:microbiology; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006088:Gram-Negative Aerobic Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006094:Gram-Positive Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D010397:Penicillanic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D010406:Penicillins / Q000494:pharmacology; D010878:Piperacillin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000078142:Tazobactam; D018440:beta-Lactam Resistance
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D010406:Penicillins; D010397:Penicillanic Acid; D000078142:Tazobactam; D010878:Piperacillin