Sulbactam/ampicillin in the treatment of pediatric infections.

Seventy eight pediatric patients (43 males, 35 females) aged 34 days to 17 years were treated with intravenous or intramuscular sulbactam/ampicillin 3 or 4 times daily for skeletal system infection (10 cases), systemic salmonellosis (2 cases), intrathoracic infection (12 cases), and soft tissue or miscellaneous infections (54 cases). The dose used to treat the majority of patients was 200 mg of ampicillin plus 100 mg of sulbactam per kg/day. The duration of treatment ranged from 8 to 23 days. Sulbactam/ampicillin alone was used in 68 patients. Ten patients were treated with an additional antibacterial agent. The overall cure rate was 98.7% for all 78 study patients. One patient with an abscess in the neck was shown to be infected with a strain of Escherichia coli resistant to sulbactam/ampicillin. Only one patient experienced a rash, but it did not necessitate discontinuation of therapy. This study shows that sulbactam/ampicillin is a safe and effective agent in the treatment of various pediatric infections.