Antibiotic treatment for community-acquired infections is just as effective over a 3 day period as for the recommended 7-10 days. A report in the British Medical Journal says shorter treatment may also stem the growth of resistance rates.
In fact, the report highlights the need for reviewing recommended durations for common infections in general.
As there have not been enough studies showing the benefits of short course therapy, it is accepted practice to carry on with antibiotic therapy for several days after symptoms have improved.
A Dutch study compared treating patients with moderate-to-severe community acquired pneumonia with amoxillin for three days and eight days after being admitted to hospital.
There were 119 patients. Following a substantial improvement after three days on intravenous amoxicillin, 63 were given oral amoxicillin while 56 were given a placebo – all of them three times a day for a further five days. They were all assessed at days 7, 10, 14 and 28 (treatment ended at day 8).
At day 10 both groups had a clinical success rate of 93%, at day 28 the oral amoxicillin group was at 90% and the placebo group at 88%. Length of hospital stay, x-ray results and resolution of symptoms were similar for both groups.
The study showed that the success rate was the same if amoxicillin treatment was stopped after three days as for eight days for adult patients with mild to moderate-severe community acquired pneumonia who responded well to the initial three days of treatment, says the report. The authors concluded that shorter treatment may also reduce general antibiotic consumption and resistance rates for respiratory infections.
Click here to view the report (PDF)
Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today