Impact of short perioperative courses of cefotaxime on aerobic bacterial flora in patients undergoing transurethral prostatic resection.

The influence of short-term prophylactic courses of cefotaxime on the microbial environment was studied. The distribution of bacterial species and their antibiotic resistance was recorded in isolates collected over a six-year period, during which time cefotaxime was used for perioperative prophylaxis in patients undergoing transurethral prostatic resection. In three consecutive studies covering the six-year observation period, the species distribution and antibiotic resistance patterns remained essentially unchanged for both cefotaxime and ampicillin. Examination of the faecal coliform flora in 23 patients given cefotaxime revealed no marked qualitative or quantitative change in the flora. It is concluded that short-term prophylactic courses of cefotaxime do not promote the emergence of resistance in the aerobic bacterial flora.