title: Daptomycin approved in Japan for the treatment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.
abstract: Daptomycin is a lipoglycopeptide antibacterial drug that is rapidly bactericidal for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection and has antibiotic activity against a wide range of Gram-positive organisms. It has been approved by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare in Japan for the treatment for bacteremia, right-sided endocarditis, and skin and skin-structure infections, such as necrotizing fasciitis, due to MRSA on the basis of a Phase III trial conducted in Japan since July, 2011. In Japanese Phase I and III trials, daptomycin therapy given at 4 mg/kg and 6 mg/kg once per day was well tolerated and effective as standard therapy for the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin-structure infections and bacteremia caused by MRSA, but side effects remain to be evaluated in large-scale trials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infection Control and Prevention, Aichi Medical University School of Medicine, Nagakute, Aichi, Japan.
authors.forename: Mao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hagihara
authors.forename: Takumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Umemura
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mori
authors.forename: Hiroshige
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mikamo