Ceftriaxone for once-a-day therapy of urinary tract infections.

Ceftriaxone given once-a-day was compared with cefazolin given three times daily as therapy for complicated and uncomplicated urinary tract infections. One hundred ten patients were randomly assigned to receive either 1 g of ceftriaxone every 24 hours or 1 g of cefazolin every eight hours. Standard bacteriologic methods were used to identify the pathogens and their susceptibilities before treatment and at intervals during and after treatment. Clinically, the two regimens were similarly efficacious. Bacteriologic results were significantly better with ceftriaxone in both the proportion of pathogens eradicated and the number of patients cured. The results demonstrate that ceftriaxone compares favorably with cefazolin and is effective when given once-a-day for both complicated and uncomplicated urinary tract infections.