Bioassay for Determining Voriconazole Serum Levels in Patients Receiving Combination Therapy with Echinocandins.
Voriconazole levels were determined with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and a microbiological agar diffusion assay using a Candida parapsilosis isolate in 103 serum samples from an HPLC-tested external quality control program (n = 39), 21 patients receiving voriconazole monotherapy (n = 39), and 7 patients receiving combination therapy (n = 25). The results of the bioassay were correlated with the results obtained from the external quality control program samples and with the HPLC results in sera from patients on voriconazole monotherapy and on combination therapy with an echinocandin (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient [rs], > 0.93; mean ± standard error of the mean [SEM] % difference, <12% ± 3.8%).
Clinical Microbiology Laboratory, Attikon University Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Maria
M
Siopi
Laboratory of Biopharmaceutics and Pharmacokinetics, Faculty of Pharmacy, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Efthymios
E
Neroutsos
Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit, Aghia Sophia Children Hospital, Athens, Greece.
Kalliopi
K
Zisaki
Pathophysiology Department, Laikon General Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Maria
M
Gamaletsou
2nd Department of Internal Medicine, Hematology Unit, Ippokration Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Maria
M
Pirounaki
2nd Department of Internal Medicine, Hematology Unit, Attikon University Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Panagiotis
P
Tsirigotis
Pathophysiology Department, Laikon General Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Nikolaos
N
Sipsas
Laboratory of Biopharmaceutics and Pharmacokinetics, Faculty of Pharmacy, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Aristides
A
Dokoumetzidis
Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit, Aghia Sophia Children Hospital, Athens, Greece.
Evgenios
E
Goussetis
Clinical Microbiology Laboratory, Attikon University Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Loukia
L
Zerva
Laboratory of Biopharmaceutics and Pharmacokinetics, Faculty of Pharmacy, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Georgia
G
Valsami
Clinical Microbiology Laboratory, Attikon University Hospital, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece jmeletiadis@med.uoa.gr.
Joseph
J
Meletiadis
D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D001681:Biological Assay; D002175:Candida / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000382:microbiology; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D054714:Echinocandins / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006801:Humans; D011786:Quality Control; D012044:Regression Analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D065819:Voriconazole / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics
D000935:Antifungal Agents; D054714:Echinocandins; D065819:Voriconazole