Non-specific influence of antibiotics on the course of infectious processes.

The clinical significance of a concomitant, non-specific influence of antibiotics on immune defence mechanisms was studied by evaluating the death rate in mice experimentally infected with highly resistant or primarily resistant microorganisms. It could be shown that the mortality rate of mice infected with Enterobacter cloacae or Candida albicans significantly increased under treatment with cefoxitin, whereas treatment with cefotaxine or lamoxactam either had no effect, or even resulted in a better survival rate in comparison to controls. These results run parallel to an inhibition (cefoxitin) or stimulation (cefotaxime and lamoxactam) of antibody production. The effect of cefoxitin on the course of experimental infections could be compensated for by the concomitant application of sodium-8-chlorotheophyllinate which promotes antibody formation. None of these antibiotics showed any additional effect in animals treated with cyclophosphamide. From these observations it was concluded that the influence of antibiotics on certain immunological parameters assayed in vitro may be reflected in comparable effects on the course of infections in vivo; this implies that under certain clinical conditions, the immunological side-effects of antibiotics may be of practical therapeutic significance.