L. Bowman et al., Differential costs and outcomes among pediatric oral antibiotic formulations identified from a large prescription database, J CHEMOTHER, 12(1), 2000, pp. 72-78
Differential performance of oral antibiotics continues to be a difficult ch
aracteristic to measure, As payers make efforts to identify selected antibi
otics to place on their formularies or to reimburse, the challenge to these
decisionmakers is to determine which agent will work best in their populat
ion. Given the differences from one clinical trial to another, identifying
performance characteristics that might impact effectiveness in clinical pra
ctice is quite challenging.
This study's aim was to determine which beta-lactam and macrolide antibioti
c provided the best clinical and economic outcome when used in difficult pe
diatric infections that previously experienced amoxicillin or cotrimoxazole
failure.
The findings demonstrated that cefaclor, azithromycin, and amoxicillin/clav
ulanate were associated with a decreased need for subsequent antibiotic the
rapy, Total drug treatment casts for beta-lactams and macrolides were lowes
t for cefaclor and azithromycin, respectively. These results are consistent
with previous published literature and seem plausible given potential comp
liance advantages of these products as reported in studies of product toler
ability and taste.