Harold J. Simon

The Newer Penicillins. II. Clinical Experiences with Methicillin and Oxacillin.

THE INTRODUCTION of penicillin revolutionized the treatment of Grampositive coccal infections. Mortali ty from pneumococcal and beta hemolytic streptococcal infections became a rarity. Staphylococcal infections also responded to penicillin therapy with almost uniform regularity initially, bu t the incidence of penicillin resistant infections began to rise even before 1950. As many as 90 per cent of staphylococcal infections seen in hospital settings were associated with penicillin resistant strains by the mid-1950s (1). Treatment was based on combinations of bacteriostatic drugs or on the use of toxic agents which were difficult to administer

Effect of tetracycline on a standardized intracutaneous staphylococcal infection in guinea pigs.

Summary Administration of tetracycline markedly lowered the charge of tetracycline-resistant staphylococci required to initiate a standardized intracutaneous lesion in guinea pigs. The results were independent of the route of antimicrobial administration. Tetracycline administered before and during the course of an infection with tetracycline susceptible staphylococci appeared inconstantly to increase the infectious charge required to establish the lesion. The mechanisms underlying these observations are not understood.

The Fate of a Western-Style Medical School in Iran

Excerpt Western europe and then the United States have pioneered the transition from traditional medicine to modern, science-based medicine that has taken place over the last 150 years. After gaini...

Drug Concentrations and Overdosage

To the Editor:— Studies on the clinical pharmacology of drugs in newborn infants have uncovered a problem of overdosage which may be more common than is generally appreciated. Several medicaments are available only in a limited number of highly concentrated formulations. The requirements of premature and full-term newborn infants for very small total dosages necessitate very careful measurement of minute quantities of drug. Overdosage can easily occur. Specifically, kanamycin sulfate is available in only two formulations for injection, containing, respectively, 250 and 333 mg/ml. The dosage of this agent for newborn infants is approximately 8 mg per kilogram of body weight every 12 hours. The injection mass for a premature infant weighing 1 kg (2.204 lb) should therefore consist of 0.024 ml of the 333 mg/ml formulation, or 0.032 ml of the 250 mg/ml formulation. Clearly, these quantities are impossible to measure accurately in a syringe unless a prior dilution

Renal Clearance of Oxacillin.

Conclusion The renal clearance of oxacillin has been determined in normal males and found to be approximately 45% that of penicillin G. Implications regarding protein binding of oxacillin are discussed.