A review of models for the therapy of experimental infections.

The advent of several new antibiotics able to counter drug-resistant bacteria, the problems in carrying out well-controlled clinical trials and the occasional disparity between in vitro and in vivo activity of antimicrobials compel us to resort to experiments using animal models in order to evaluate different therapeutic regimens. We wish here to discuss the prerequisites of a reliable animal model for the therapy of experimental infections and to analyze the influence of combined antimicrobial therapy on the outcome of non-human infections. The interaction between antibiotics and infected tissues will also be considered. Finally, we shall examine the interrelations between host defenses and antibiotics in models for experimental infections.