Oral ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, and lomefloxacin as alternatives to intravenous antimicrobial therapy.

Ciprofloxacin, ofloxacin, and lomefloxacin are oral fluoroquinolones with ideal characteristics for oral antimicrobial therapy. These agents provide 1) appropriate and reliable serum concentrations, 2) broad antimicrobial activity, 3) proven efficacy in the treatment of serious infections, and 4) good tolerability. Although cations decrease the absorption of these drugs, there are proven means of avoiding these interactions. Therefore, these agents could easily be utilized as alternatives to prolonged intravenous treatment of many infectious diseases in patients who do not have conditions which impair drug absorption.