EFFECTS ON GROWTH OF SINGLE SHORT COURSES OF FLUOROQUINOLONES

The aim of the study was to document the effects of short courses of f luoroquinolones given during an outbreak of multidrug resistant typhoi d fever in southern Viet Nam on the growth of children over a period o f two years. In a prospective cohort study, 326 Vietnamese children ag ed between 1 and 14 years were followed up for two years after receivi ng either ciprofloxacin (70 mg/kg given over 7 d) (n=173) or ofloxacin (45-50 mg/kg given over 3-5 d) (n=153) for suspected typhoid fever. G rowth velocity and weight for height were compared with an age matched control group of children from the same locality (n=223) who had not contracted typhoid or received any fluoroquinolones. In the ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin treated patients there was no evidence of acute join t toxicity, nor of any joint symptoms attributable to either of the fl uoroquinolones. There was no difference in expected weight for height measurements between the three groups of children over the two year pe riod. During the first year, height velocity in ciprofloxacin treated children was greater than in either ofloxacin treated children or untr eated controls. Height velocity in the latter two groups was not signi ficantly different. After two years height velocity was similar in the three groups. The results support the use of short course fluoroquino lone treatment in childhood typhoid, especially when caused by strains resistant to other antibiotics.