title: Short-term treatment of pertussis with azithromycin in infants and young children.
abstract: A prospective, open, noncomparative study was conducted to assess the efficacy and safety of azithromycin given once daily for 3 or 5 days to eradicate Bordetella pertussis from the upper respiratory tract of infants and young children. Seventeen children received azithromycin in a dose of 10 mg/kg on day 1 followed by 5 mg/kg once daily for four consecutive days, and 20 were given 10 mg/kg once daily for 3 days. Seven days after the initiation of therapy, 33 of 35 (94.3%) patients had negative cultures for Bordetella pertussis. On day 14, cultures from all 34 evaluable patients were negative. These findings suggest that a controlled, comparative study of erythromycin versus short-term administration of azithromycin is justified.
authors.affiliation: University Hospital for Infectious Diseases Dr. Fran Mihaljević, Zagreb, Croatia.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Baće
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zrnić
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Begovac
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kuzmanović
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Culig
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017963:Azithromycin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001886:Bordetella pertussis / Q000302:isolation & purification; D003470:Culture Media; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014917:Whooping Cough / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D003470:Culture Media; D017963:Azithromycin