title: Antimicrobial activity of gatifloxacin compared to seven other compounds tested against gram-positive organisms isolated at 10 cancer-treatment centers.
abstract: Gram-positive bacterial pathogens are important causes of disease in cancer patients and are becoming increasingly resistant to available antimicrobial agents. We examined the in vitro activity of gatifloxacin, a new fluoroquinolone, compared with other quinolones, ceftazidime, and traditional Gram-positive-active agents tested against pathogens isolated from patients at 10 cancer treatment hospitals in the United States. A total of 1,128 Gram-positive isolates were tested by the E-test method (AB BIODISK, Solna, Sweden) with results validated by concurrent quality control strain analysis. Gatifloxacin was more potent than either ciprofloxacin or levofloxacin against all Gram-positive species. Vancomycin was the most active agent tested against all species except Bacillus spp., which were more susceptible to the fluoroquinolones. When tested against these Gram-positive pathogens from patients with cancer, the spectrum of gatifloxacin was also greater than that of levofloxacin and ciprofloxacin. Gatifloxacin may have a role as part of prophylactic or therapeutic antimicrobial regimens for selected cancer patients with Gram-positive infections.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City 52242, USA.
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Diekema
authors.forename: R N
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: K V
authors.initials: KV
authors.lastname: Rolston
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002173:Cancer Care Facilities; D004352:Drug Resistance, Microbial; D024841:Fluoroquinolones; D000077734:Gatifloxacin; D006094:Gram-Positive Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016908:Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D024841:Fluoroquinolones; D000077734:Gatifloxacin