Efficacy of ceftizoxime administered twice daily in hospitalized patients with respiratory tract infections.

The efficacy and safety of ceftizoxime administered twice daily were evaluated in 215 hospitalized patients with documented lower respiratory tract infections. The majority of patients received 1 to 2 gm of ceftizoxime intramuscularly or intravenously every 12 hours; the mean dosage was 2 gm/day, and the mean duration of therapy was 8.9 days. Clinical cure was achieved in 204 (95%) of the 215 patients with lower respiratory tract infection. One hundred and thirty-eight patients were both clinically and bacteriologically evaluable. The clinical response rates, by organism, were: Streptococcus pneumoniae, 100% (50/50); Haemophilus influenzae, 96% (25/26); gram-negative bacilli (Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis, Enterobacter sp, Serratia sp, Pseudomonas sp, Klebsiella sp, Citrobacter sp, and Morganella morganii), 86% (32/37); and Staphylococcus aureus, 92% (12/13). In the other 77 patients with clinical symptoms, no pathogen was isolated or insufficient follow-up data were collected to assess bacteriologic response. Adverse reactions, which were infrequent, were similar to those reported in other US trials of the drug. The findings indicate that ceftizoxime, 1 to 2 gm BID, is effective and safe in the treatment of lower respiratory tract infections in hospitalized patients. This low-dose regimen can significantly reduce the cost of cephalosporin therapy.