TREATMENT OF COMMUNITY-ACQUIRED PNEUMONIA - A RANDOMIZED COMPARISON OF SPARFLOXACIN, AMOXICILLIN-CLAVULANIC ACID AND ERYTHROMYCIN

The treatment of community-acquired pneumonia is empirical in most cas es and must cover a wide range of potential pathogens, such as Strepto coccus pneumoniae, including penicillin-resistant strains, Haemophilus influenzae and intracellular microorganisms. The objective of this do uble-blind, randomized, parallel group study was to compare the effica cy and safety of sparfloxacin (400 mg loading dose, followed by 200 mg o.d.) with that of oral amoxycillin-clavulanic acid (500/125 mg t.i.d .) or oral erythromycin (1 g b.i.d.), during 7-14 days in 808 patients with confirmed community-acquired pneumonia. The overall success rate s for sparfloxacin (87%), amoxycillin-clavulanic acid (80%) and erythr omycin (85%) were similar in evaluable patients, and the equivalence h ypothesis used for the statistical analysis showed at least an equival ent efficacy for the three antibiotics tested. The analysis of microbi ologically documented infections (40% of the patients) showed that ove rall success rates were similar for S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae in fections. Treatment withdrawal was necessary in 3.5, 2.5 and 7.7% of t he patients treated with sparfloxacin, amoxycillin-clavulanic acid and erythromycin, respectively. This study indicates that sparfloxacin wa s at least as effective as amoxycillin-clavulanic acid or erythromycin in the treatment of mild-to-moderate community-acquired pneumonia and that the adverse effects were similar in the three groups.