The cephalosporin antibiotics in pediatric practice.

The efficacy of the cephalosporins against gram-positive cocci and some of the gram-negative bacilli together with their relative safety make this family of antibiotics potentially useful in treating pediatric infections, particularly in instances of penicillin hypersensitivity. Newer cephalosporins have broadened the antimicrobial spectral range and may offset some of the previous drawbacks to their use in children. Of potential interest to the pediatrician is the highly active inhibitory effect against Hemophilus influenzae by cefamandole, one of the newer cephalosporin congeners.