[Successful telithromycin therapy of Legionella pneumonia --report of three cases].
Legionella species have been widely recognized as among the important causative organisms of community-acquired pneumonia in Japan. A delay in the start of adequate treatment has a negative influence on the outcome of the disease. Telithromycin, the first oral ketolide antibacterial, was developed for the treatment of community-acquired pneumonia, including Legionella pneumonia. However, few reports have indicated the efficacy of telithromycin in community-acquired pneumonia caused by Legionella species. We report three cases of Legionella pneumonia, that were improved by early telithromycin therapy. The first patient (67-year-old man) had bronchiectasis as an underlying disease, and the second patient (73-year-old man) had diabetes mellitus and chronic renal failure. The third patient (62-year-old man) developed pneumonia after a spa tour. The diagnosis of Legionella pneumonia was made on the basis of the presence of a single IgG titer of 1/256 in case 1 and positive antigenuria in cases 2 and 3. The patients were classified into a mild group (case 1) and a moderate group (cases 2 and 3) based on the severity of the community-acquired pneumonia according to the 2005 Japanese Respiratory Society Guidelines. The results support the efficacy of telithromycin in mild to moderate Legionella pneumonia.
Itoh
Akihiro
A
Department of Respiratory Medicine, Nishi-Kobe Medical Center.
Tomioka
Hiromi
H
Isobe
Masanori
M
Yamamoto
Tsuyoshi
T
Ohnishi
Hisashi
H
Tada
Kimihide
K
Iwasaki
Hironobu
H
D000368:Aged; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D048628:Ketolides / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007877:Legionnaires' Disease / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000188:drug therapy
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D048628:Ketolides; C106791:telithromycin