Once-daily ceftriaxone therapy for serious bacterial infections in children.

Ceftriaxone administered as a single daily dose of 50 mg/kg was evaluated in the treatment of 35 children with a variety of nonmeningitic bacterial infections. In two of the patients, the drug was discontinued before the response to the drug could be evaluated. All of the remaining patients had a satisfactory response. In 22 of the patients, plasma was available for the determination of ceftriaxone levels 1 h after a dose and immediately before the next dose. All but one of these patients had trough ceftriaxone levels which exceeded the MIC of the infecting organism, although marginally so for Staphylococcus aureus. Ceftriaxone appears to be safe and effective in the treatment of a variety of bacterial pathogens in children when administered at a single daily dose of 50 mg/kg. This drug may be especially useful in those patients in whom outpatient antibiotic therapy is contemplated or in whom maintenance of intravenous access is difficult.