The antimicrobial activity of sisomicin against fresh clinical isolates

Antimicrobial activities of sisomicin (SISO) against clinical isolates obtained in the second half of 1986 were investigated together with other 4 aminoglycosides (AGs) (gentamicin (GM), tobramycin (TOB), dibekacin (DKB), amikacin (AMK] and 2 cephems (cefotiam, cefotaxime), and were compared to the results reported in the period of late 1970's through early 1980's in Japan. 1. The incidence of SISO-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in the present study was 18% and is comparable to that of the other studies suggesting that the incidence of SISO resistant strains remains on the stable level. The incidence of SISO-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa showed the tendency of slight increase. 2. SISO-resistant strains of Enterobacter spp., Serratia marcescens and Citrobacter freundii did not show increase from the 1970/1980 levels. 3. Isolation rates of SISO-resistant indole(+) Proteus varied depending on strains. Isolation rates of SISO-resistant P. vulgaris and Morganella morganii were both as low as 4%, but that of Providencia rettgeri was as high as 60%. Refering to an American study reporting that the Genus Providencia including P. rettgeri showed high incidence of resistance to SISO as well as to GM or TOB, we pointed out that the antimicrobial activity of AGs against Genus Providencia should be evaluated separately from those of other indole(+) Proteus strains. 4. No SISO-resistant strains of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae or P. mirabilis were found. 5. SISO had good antimicrobial activity against most of the investigated species and SISO may still be regarded as one of the clinically useful AGs.     

Antibacterial activities of monobactams against fresh clinical isolates

Antibacterial activities of monobactam antibiotics (carumonam (CRMN) and aztreonam (AZT] against Gram-negative bacilli isolated from inpatients in the latter half of 1987 were investigated using penicillin (PC: piperacillin (PIPC], cephems (CEPs: ceftazidime (CAZ), cefotaxime (CTX), latamoxef (LMOX), cefsulodin (CFS], carbapenem (imipenem (IPM] and pyridonecarboxylic acids (norfloxacin (NFLX) and ofloxacin (OFLX] as reference antibiotics. A total of 400 strains of 13 species, i.e. Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Klebsiella oxytoca, Proteus mirabilis, Proteus vulgaris, Morganella morganii, Providencia rettgeri, Citrobacter freundii, Enterobacter cloacae, Enterobacter aerogenes, Serratia marcescens, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Haemophilus influenzae, were used as test strains. 1. CRMN and AZT, both monobactam antibiotics, were roughly comparable in their activities and no resistant strain to these antibiotics were found among isolates of E. coli, Klebsiella spp., Proteus spp., M. morganii, P. rettgeri or H. influenzae and few resistant strains were observed among isolates of S. marcescens. On the other hand, isolates of C. freundii, Enterobacter spp. and P. aeruginosa included rather numerous strains resistant to the monobactam antibiotics. Among these cases, whereas R strains, i.e. resistant strains showing MICs greater than or equal to 50 micrograms/ml, accounted for a large proportion of strains resistant to PC and CEPs, I strains, i.e. intermediately resistant strains showing MICs between 12.5 and 25 micrograms/ml, accounted for a large proportion of strains resistant to the monobactam antibiotics. 2. Strains resistant to PIPC, a PC, were detected with high and more or less uniform frequencies over the entire spectrum of the isolates examined. 3. Antibacterial activities of CEPs varied against different bacterial species. While strains resistant to CTX, CAZ and LMOX were commonly detected with high frequencies among isolates of C. freundii, Enterobacter spp. and S. marcescens, large percentages of LMOX-resistant strains of C. freundii and Enterobacter spp. were of the I type. CTX-resistant strains were also found among isolates of P. vulgaris and M. morganii. Proportions of CEP-resistant strains of P. aeruginosa were 28% for CFS and 12% for CAZ. 4. No or few strains among the isolates of 13 species investigated were resistant to IPM, a carbapenem antibiotic, which showed the most stable antibacterial activity, but it was less active than monobactam antibiotics and CEPs against Klebsiella spp., P. mirabilis and H. influenzae.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

Antimicrobial activities of gentamicin against fresh clinical isolates

Antimicrobial activities of gentamicin (GM), compared with activities of other aminoglycosides (AGs) and beta-lactam antibiotics, were studied against clinical isolates obtained during a period of July-December 1989. 1. GM-resistant strains were noted in 24% of Staphylococcus aureus, 12% of Enterobacter spp., 24% of Serratia marcescens, 7% of Morganella morganii and 26% of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, but no GM-resistant strains were observed among isolates of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis and Proteus vulgaris. 2. A majority of GM-resistant strains of S. aureus were methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and a large number of GM-resistant strains of Enterobacter spp. was also resistant to new quinolones. GM showed, however, strong antimicrobial activities against new quinolones-resistant strains of S. marcescens, M. morganii and P. aeruginosa. 3. Among all the isolates tested of S. marcescens, 24% were GM-resistant, 72% were tobramycin (TOB)-resistant, 86% were dibekacin (DKB)-resistant and 64% were amikacin (AMK)-resistant, hence the incidence of GM-resistant strains was the lowest. This tendency was also observed with P. vulgaris. However, among P. aeruginosa, 26% were GM-resistant, 14% TOB-resistant, 18% DKB-resistant and 22% AMK-resistant, thus the incidence rate for GM-resistance was somewhat higher. These results suggest that different AGs-modification enzymes were produced by various clinical isolates under the present condition. 4. Comparing the ratio of GM-resistant strains in the present study with those in 1980 and 1983, the ratio increased among S. aureus, while decreases were observed among Enterobacter spp., S. marcescens, P. vulgaris and P. aeruginosa, indicating that a unilateral tendency of increases in GM-resistant strains did not exist among clinical isolates over the years.     

Antibacterial activity of gentamicin against clinical isolates in pediatrics

Antibacterial activity of gentamicin (GM), along with activities of other aminoglycosides and beta-lactams, was studied against clinical isolates collected from pediatric patients during a period of May 1986-April 1987. 1. GM-resistance was noted in 22% of Staphylococcus aureus, 6% of Proteus vulgaris, 8% of Morganella morganii, 40% of Providencia spp., 6% of Enterobacter spp., 14% of Serratia marcescens, and 14% of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates. No GM-resistance was observed with isolates of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Proteus mirabilis. 2. The antibacterial activity of GM against clinical isolates from pediatric patients was found to be comparable to its activity against clinical isolates from adults studied at the same time. 3. The majority of GM-resistant strains of S. aureus were MCRSA, and the GM-resistant strains of S. marcescens and P. aeruginosa were found also to be resistant to multiple drugs. 4. GM-resistant strains were found at relatively high rates (14-22%) in S. aureus, S. marcescens and P. aeruginosa. These rates did not increase compared to the rates observed in the first half of the 1980's. 5. GM was considered to have poor antibacterial activity against genus Providencia. It is concluded from above results that GM still maintains effective antibacterial activity against many of causative organisms of infections in both adults and children.     

Antibacterial activities of ofloxacin against recent isolates from patients with community-acquired infections

In order to survey antibacterial activities of ofloxacin (OFLX) against 1,440 bacterial strains isolated from patients with community-acquired infections in 1987 and 1990, minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of the drug as well as those of other new quinolones and oral cephems were determined. The following conclusions were reached. 1. Comparison of the MIC distribution for strains isolated in 1987 with those in 1990 suggested a tendency toward an increase in the frequency of OFLX-resistant isolates with the passage of time of Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, Citrobacter spp., Klebsiella ssp., Enterobacter spp., Proteus vulgaris, Morganella morganii, Providencia spp., and Acinetobacter calcoaceticus. Most common elevations of MIC values against these bacteria were observed in MIC80 and MIC90 values, while no significant alteration was observed in MIC50 values. However, MIC50's of OFLX against Serratia marcescens and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were relatively high for strains isolated in both 1987 and 1990. Most of the OFLX-resistant strains of S. aureus seemed to be methicillin-resistant (MRSA). Furthermore, MIC80 of OFLX against coagulase-negative staphylococci was high in strains isolated in both 1987 and 1990. 2. Susceptibility of Streptococcus spp. was evaluated only in strains isolated in 1990. The results were comparable to those reported by others in the early 1980s. 3. Bacteria which showed no or infrequent emergence of OFLX-resistant strains even in 1990 were Proteus mirabilis, Haemophilus influenzae, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Campylobacter spp. and Peptostreptococcus spp. 4. Recently isolated strains from patients with community-acquired infections showed a tendency toward an increase of the frequency of OFLX-resistant strains among many bacteria. However, the bacteria which contained high percentages of OFLX-resistant strains except for MRSA were so-called less-virulent bacteria, and in the other bacteria elevations of MIC values were only observed in MIC80 and MIC90. These results suggested that OFLX preserved a potent antibacterial activity against bacteria which were major causative pathogens in community-acquired infections.     

Susceptibilities of clinical bacterial isolates to antimicrobial agents. A study mainly focused on imipenem. Reported by the Research Group for Testing Imipenem Susceptibility on Clinical Isolates

This study was conducted to investigate susceptibilities of clinical bacterial isolates to imipenem (IPM) and other antibacterial agents at 64 hospital laboratories throughout Japan from September to December of 1988. In this study, identification and susceptibility testing were carried out at each laboratory and the tests were performed according to the disk dilution method recommended by NCCLS in which susceptibilities are classified into "S", "MS", "I" and "R". IPM showed markedly high in vitro activities against Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus agalactiae, Enterococcus faecalis, Haemophilus influenzae, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Klebsiella oxytoca, Enterobacter aerogenes, Enterobacter cloacae, Serratia marcescens, Salmonella spp., Citrobacter freundii, Proteus mirabilis, Proteus vulgaris, Morganella morganii, Providencia rettgeri, Providencia stuartii, Acinetobacter calcoaceticus, Moraxella (Branhamella) catarrhalis, Alcaligenes spp., Peptococcus spp./Peptostreptococcus spp., Bacteroides fragilis and Bacteroides spp. IPM also had strong activities against Achromobacter xylosoxidans and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, but less active against Flavobacterium spp., E. faecium, coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS), Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas cepacia. In a study in which activities of IPM against bacteria isolated from different clinical sources were compared, differences in susceptibilities were observed among S. aureus, CNS, A. calcoaceticus and P. aeruginosa, but such differences were not apparent among S. pneumoniae, E. faecalis, H. influenzae, E. coli, K. pneumoniae, E. cloacae, C. freundii, S. marcescens or P. mirabilis.     

Synergistic action of cefodizime with other antimicrobial agents on clinically isolated microorganisms. II. Synergistic action with sisomicin]

Cefodizime (CDZM) possesses a broad antimicrobial spectrum and a relatively long half life in the blood. In addition, it shows excellent therapeutic efficacies in the treatment of infections in leukopenic animal models, hence it is expected that CDZM may have good efficacies against various infections in immunocompromised hosts. In the meantime, sisomicin (SISO) not only has strong antibacterial activities against Gram-negative rods (GNR), but has relatively low nephrotoxicity and ototoxicity. Thus, we examined antibacterial effectiveness of the combination of CDZM and SISO against clinical isolates in vitro. 1. Antibacterial effects of CDZM+SISO combination were examined using SISO susceptible strains of Escherichia coli, Citrobacter freundii, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter cloacae, Serratia marcescens, Proteus vulgaris, Morganella morganii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Observations that the combination of the 2 drugs showed FIC indices between less than 0.5-less than 1.0 against most of these strains at SISO concentrations of 1 MIC or sub MIC levels strongly suggested the presence of a synergistic action between the 2 drugs against SISO susceptible strains of GNR. 2. Of the strains tested, 10% of C. freundii, 6.7% of E. cloacae, 63.3% of S. marcescens, 23.3% of P. vulgaris and 18.0% of P. aeruginosa were found to be resistant to SISO, and little synergistic effect of the 2 drugs was observed against these strains. 3. As the synergistic effect of the 2 drugs against GNR was observed against SISO susceptible strains including those which were resistant to CDZM, but not against those strains which were resistant to SISO, it seems reasonable to conclude that the appearance of the synergistic effect between the 2 drugs depends on the activity of SISO.     

Yearly changes in antibacterial activities of cefozopran against various clinical isolates between 1996 and 2001--II. Gram-negative bacteria

The in vitro antibacterial activities of cefozopran (CZOP), an agent of cephems, against various clinical isolates obtained between 1996 and 2001 were yearly evaluated and compared with those of other cephems, oxacephems and carbapenems. A total of 3,245 strains in 32 species of Gram-negative bacteria were isolated from the clinical materials annually collected from January to December, and consisted of Moraxella subgenus Branhamella catarrhalis, Escherichia coli, Citrobacter freundii, Citrobacter koseri, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Klebsiella oxytoca, Enterobacter aerogenes, Enterobacter cloacae, Serratia marcescens, Proteus mirabillis, Proteus vulgaris, Morganella morganii, Providencia spp. (P. alcalifaciens, P. rettgeri, P. stuartii), Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas putida, Burkholderia cepacia, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Haemophilus influenzae, Acinetobactor baumannii, Acinetobactor lwoffii, Bacteroides fragilis group (B. fragilis, B. vulgatus, B. distasonis, B. ovatus, B. thetaiotaomicron), and Prevotella spp. (P. melaninogenica, P. intermedia, P. bivia, P. oralis, P. denticola). CZOP possessed stable antibacterial activities against M. (B.) catarrhalis, E. coli, C. freundii, C. koseri, K. pneumoniae, K. oxytoca, E. aerogenes, E. cloacae, S. marcescens, P. mirabilis, P. vulgaris, M. morganii, Providencia spp., P. aeruginosa, and A. lwoffii throughout 6 years. The MIC90 of CZOP against those strains were consistent with those obtained from the studies performed until the new drug application approval. On the other hand, the MIC90 of CZOP against H. influenzae yearly obviously increased with approximately 64-time difference during the study period. The MIC90 of cefpirome, cefepime, and flomoxef against H. influenzae also yearly tended to rise. The present results demonstrated that CZOP had maintained the antibacterial activity against almost Gram-negative strains tested. However, the decrease in antibacterial activities of CZOP against B. cepacia, and H. influenzae was suggested.     

Susceptibilities of clinical bacterial isolates to antimicrobial agents. A study mainly focused on imipenem. Research Group for Testing Imipenem Susceptibility on Clinical Isolates

We investigated susceptibilities of clinical bacterial isolates to imipenem (IPM) and other antimicrobial agents at 459 hospital laboratories throughout Japan from September to December of 1988. In this study, identification and susceptibility testing were performed at each hospital laboratory and the tests were carried out according to the 1-dilution or 3-dilution disc technique in which susceptibilities are classified into 4 grades: , ++, + and -. IPM had significantly high activity against Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus agalactiae, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Klebsiella oxytoca, Enterobacter aerogenes, Enterobacter cloacae, Salmonella spp., Citrobacter freundii, Proteus mirabilis, Providencia rettgeri, Acinetobacter calcoaceticus, Moraxella catarrhalis, Alcaligenes spp., Peptococcus spp./Peptostreptococcus spp., Bacteroides fragilis and Bacteroides spp. and should slightly lower activities on coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS), Enterococcus faecalis, Haemophilus influenzae, Serratia marcescens, Proteus vulgaris, Providencia stuartii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa than on the above mentioned bacteria. In a comparative study on activities of IPM against bacteria from different clinical sources, no remarkable differences were found due to different sources among S. pneumoniae, E. faecalis, H. influenzae, E. coli, K. pneumoniae, E. cloacae, C. freundii, P. mirabilis or A. calcoaceticus, whereas slight differences were found among Staphylococcus aureus, CNS, S. marcescens and P. aeruginosa.     

Susceptibility of clinically isolated bacterial strains to imipenem/cilastatin sodium

In vitro antibacterial activities of imipenem/cilastatin sodium (imipenem) and other beta-lactams against clinically isolated 353 bacterial strains were investigated. The results obtained in this study are summarized as follows: 1. Imipenem (IPM) showed potent antibacterial activities against Gram-positive cocci such as Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus agalactiae. 2. IPM had inferior or equivalent antibacterial activities to beta-lactams against clinically isolated Enterobacteriaceae, that is, Escherichia coli, Citrobacter freundii, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Serratia marcescens, Enterobacter cloacae, Enterobacter aerogenes and Proteus spp. 3. IPM showed potent antibacterial activities against clinically isolated Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter anitratus but not against Xanthomonas maltophilia.     

Determination of the MIC of cefotetan against freshly isolated gram-negative bacilli

Antimicrobial activities (MICs) of cefotetan (CTT) against 575 strains of 16 spp. of Gram-negative bacilli isolated in 1988 were determined to investigate distribution of MICs in comparison with those of cefmetazole (CMZ), cefoxitin (CFX), latamoxef (LMOX) and cefazolin (CEZ). The change in frequencies of incidence of cephem-resistant strains in the latter half of the 1980 was also investigated. Distribution of MIC of CTT varied with test strains. No or very few MICs were at or higher than 12.5 micrograms/ml at an inoculation of 10(6) cfu/ml, thus rates of CTT-resistant strains were low among Escherichia coli, Citrobacter diversus, Klebsiella spp., Proteus spp., Providencia spp., and Haemophilus influenzae. High rates of resistance to CTT were observed, however, among Citrobacter freundii, Enterobacter spp., Serratia marcescens, Morganella morganii, and Bacteroides fragilis. 2. Most CTT-resistant strains of C. freundii, Enterobacter spp. and S. marcescens were also resistant to LMOX. These resistant strains were considered to be multi-resistant strains to antibiotics including oxime type cephalosporins and monobactams. 3. Cephem-resistant E. coli was confirmed to be resistant to 22% of CEZ, 14% of CFX, 10% of CMZ and 2% of CTT tested. The incidence of cephem-resistant E. coli unconditionally showed an increasing tendency. 4. The incidence of resistant strains against cephamycins including CTT is discussed with regard to the mechanism of resistance against all beta-lactam antibiotics, and the problem of the appearance of resistant strains is close and inseparable from social background.     

Susceptibility of clinical bacterial isolates to aztreonam

In vitro activities of 7 antimicrobial agents against organisms (474 strains) isolated from patients with various infections in Ehime University Hospital from May to July 1986 were investigated. Summarized results are as follows: 1. Aztreonam (AZT) showed potent activities against Escherichia coli, Citrobacter sp., Klebsiella pneumoniae, Serratia marcescens, Proteus sp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Haemophilus influenzae. 2. Antimicrobial activities of AZT were especially superior against Proteus sp. to the third generation cephem antibiotics. 3. Enterobacter sp. seemed more susceptible to AZT than to cephem antibiotics, but minimum inhibitory concentrations of AZT against may isolates of Enterobacter sp. were in wide ranges.     

Yearly changes in antibacterial activities of cefozopran against various clinical isolates between 1996 and 2000--II. Gram-negative bacteria

The in vitro antibacterial activities of cefozopran (CZOP), an agent of cephems, against various clinical isolates obtained between 1996 and 2000 were yearly evaluated and compared with those of other cephems, oxacephems, and carbapenems. Thirty-two species 2,697 strains of Gram-negative bacteria were isolated from the clinical materials annually collected from January to December, and consisted of Moraxella subgenus Branhamella catarrhalis (n = 125), Escherichia coli (n = 250), Citrobacter freundii (n = 153), Citrobacter koseri (n = 97), Klebsiella pneumoniae (n = 150), Klebsiella oxytoca (n = 100), Enterobacter aerogenes (n = 50), Enterobacter cloacae (n = 125), Serratia marcescens (n = 153), Proteus mirabillis (n = 103), Proteus vulgaris (n = 77), Morganella morganii (n = 141), Providencia spp. (P. alcalifaciens, P. rettgeri, P. stuartii; n = 154), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (n = 211), Pseudomonas putida (n = 49), Burkholderia cepacia (n = 102), Stenotrophomonas maltophilia (n = 101), Haemophilus influenzae (n = 210), Acinetobactor baumannii (n = 63), Acinetobactor Iwoffii (n = 30), Bacteroides fragilis group (B. fragilis, B. vulgatus, B. distasonis, B. ovatus, B. thetaiotaomicron; n = 129), and Prevotella spp. (P. melaninogenica, P. intermedia, P. bivia, P. oralis, P. denticola; n = 124). CZOP possessed stable antibacterial activities against M. (B.) catarrhalis, E. coli, C. freundii, C. koseri, K. pneumoniae, K. oxytoca, E. aerogenes, E. cloacae, S. marcescens, P. mirabilis, P. vulgaris, M. morganii, Providencia spp., P. aeruginosa, and A. lowffii throughout 5 years. The MIC90 of CZOP against those strains were consistent with those obtained from the studies performed until the new drug application approval. On the other hand, the MIC90 of CZOP against H. influenzae yearly obviously increased with approximately 65-time difference during study period. The MIC90 of cefpirome, cefepime, and flomoxef against H. influenzae also yearly tended to rise. The present results demonstrated that CZOP had maintained the antibacterial activity against almost Gram-negative strains tested. However, the decrease in the antibacterial activity of CZOP against H. influenzae was suggested.     

Antibacterial activities and PK/PD parameters of aminoglycosides against recent clinical isolates of gram-negative rods

We examined antibacterial activities and PK/PD parameters of six kinds of aminoglycosides against seven bacterial species of clinical isolates in 2001. Aminoglycoseides examined were gentamicin (GM), dibekacin (DKB), tobramycin (TOB), amikacin (AMK), netilmicin (NTL), and isepamicin (ISP), and bacterial isolates used were each 50 strains of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter cloacae, Citrobacter freundii, Proteus spp., Serratia marcescens and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. All aminoglycosides showed good activities with low MICs against 6 species of Enterobacteriacea except S. marcescens. Eight strains (3.2%) among them were resistant to one or more aminoglycosides. Resistance to multiple aminoglycosides were detected in 16 strains (32%) of S. marcescens, among which 13 strains were resistant to AMK but susceptible to ISP. Three (6%) strains of P. aeruginosa were resistant to multiple drugs, one of which was resistant to all six aminoglycosides, and others were moderately susceptible to AMK and ISP, and susceptible to GM, AMK and ISP. Using a ratio of peak serum concentration to MIC90 (Cmax/MIC90) or a ratio of area under the curve to MIC90 (AUC/MIC90) as a pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) parameter, we estimated the efficacy of the drug. An excellent effect of ISP, which was injected intramuscularly or intravenously at a dose of 400 mg, was expected for strains of Enterobacteriacea except S. marcescens. The Cmax/MIC90 ratios for S. marcescens were comparably higher in GM and ISP and that for P. aeruginosa were rather high in TOB when compared to other aminoglycosides. Another PK/PD parameter, AUC/MIC90 ratio, was high enough in NTL and ISP for Enterobacteriacea, suggesting good efficacy of these drugs. The (AUC/MIC90) ratios for S. marcescens were comparably high in GM and ISP, and that for P. aeruginosa were high in TOB, DKB, and ISP.     

Survey of the sensitivities of clinical isolates to antibacterial agents (annual report)]

Research groups were formed in 21 institutions nationwide to investigate carbapenem resistance. The activities of various antibacterial agents, principally carbapenems, were tested against clinical isolates collected from these institutions. The broth microdilution method was used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of 17 antibacterial agents for 1,241 strains of 11 bacterial species isolated at all institutions between October and December 1996. The results were as follows: Carbapenems exhibited strong antibacterial activities against MSSA and Streptococcus pneumoniae and showed low activities against MRSA. Their activities against Enterococcus faecalis were comparable to that of ampicillin and piperacillin. The carbapenems showed high activities against Haemophilis influenzae, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae. Enterobacter cloacae. Serratia marcescens and Bacteroides fragilis group. Their activities were greater than that exhibited by other beta-lactam antibacterial agents, but some resistant strains of Serratia marcescens were detected. The antibacterial activity of carbapenems against Pseudomonas aeruginosa was comparable to that of CAZ, and there were some resistant strains.     

Susceptibility of clinically isolated strains to aztreonam

In vitro antibacterial activities of aztreonam (AZT) and cephems against clinically isolated 334 strains were investigated. The results obtained in the study are summarized as follows: 1. AZT showed excellent antibacterial activities against clinically isolated 334 strains. 2. AZT showed potent activities against Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus spp., Enterobacter aerogenes and Citrobacter freundii. 3. Antibacterial activities of AZT were superior against Enterobacter cloacae, Serratia marcescens and Pseudomonas aeruginosa to those of cephems.     

Antimicrobial activities of ceftazidime on fresh clinical isolates]

Antimicrobial activity of ceftazidime (CAZ) was compared with those of other cephem antibiotics against clinically isolated strains sent to us by medical institutions throughout Japan in 1989 and 1991. Those strains separated and identified from samples collected from patients with various infections were also examined, and the following results were obtained. 1. The results suggested that, compared with reports of studies conducted with clinical isolates in early 1980's, MIC90 of CAZ in 1991 were markedly higher against Staphylococcus spp., Streptococcus pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Enterobacter spp., Serratia marcescens, Proteus vulgaris, Morganella morganii, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Also, among other bacteria such as Providencia rettgeri, Providencia stuartii, Xanthomonas maltophilia, and Bacteroides fragilis group, strains resistant to CAZ were observed in high proportions. However, large time-course changes were not observed in microbial activities of CAZ on Streptococcus pyogenes, Klebsiella spp, Proteus mirabilis, Pseudomonas cepacia, Acinetobacter calcoaceticus, Haemophilus influenzae and Anaerobic GPC (Gram-positive cocci). 2. Among the strains used in the study, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Benzylpenicillin (PCG)-insensitive S. pneumoniae (PISP), cephamycin and oxime type cephem-resistant Gram-negative bacilli of Enterobacteriaceae and new quinolone-resistant organisms were observed in high proportions. It appears therefore, that CAZ failed to exert sufficient antimicrobial activities to these strains because of combination of resistance in these strains. 3. Antimicrobial activities of CAZ on recent clinical isolates showed problems as mentioned above. However, it was also demonstrated that CAZ maintained effective antimicrobial activities against most of the clinical isolates which could be causative organisms of infectious diseases in the clinical practice. When it is additionally taken into account that CAZ is one of those limited drugs with activity against P. aeruginosa, and it has excellent permeability through outer membrane, it is concluded that CAZ still is one of the clinically useful cephem drugs in 1990's.     

Antibacterial activity of cephem antibiotics against isolates from clinical specimens at the Yokohama City University Hospital

Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of cephem antibiotics against 405 strains belonging to 17 species of clinical isolates were investigated using the standard method of the Japanese Congress of Chemotherapy. The results obtained are summarized below. Cephem antibiotics showed weak antibacterial activities against Enterococcus sp., B. fragilis and S. marcescens. S. pneumoniae, S. agalactiae, E. coli, K. pneumoniae and P. mirabilis were susceptible to cephem antibiotics. Cephem antibiotics of the 1st and the 2nd generations showed weak antibacterial activity against Citrobacter sp. and E. cloacae, while cephem antibiotics of 3rd generation had a good antibacterial activity against these species. Cephem antibiotics of the 2nd and the 3rd generations showed high antibacterial activity against H. influenzae and indole positive Proteus group. Cefoperazone showed high antibacterial activity against P. aeruginosa. Resistance to latamoxef, ceftizoxime and cefoxitin was observed among Staphylococcus sp., while the MICs of other antibiotics against Staphylococcus sp. were fairly low. Number of strains resistant to the 3rd cephem antibiotics seems to be increasing because the 3rd generation of cephem antibiotics have been used frequently. Further investigation will be required on resistant organism to these antibiotics including beta-lactamase producing strains.     

Comparative studies on activities of antimicrobial agents against causative organisms isolated from urinary tract infections (1988). III. Secular changes in susceptibility]

Sensitivities to various antibacterial and antibiotic agents of strains of Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp., Proteus spp., Citrobacter spp., Enterobacter spp., Serratia marcescens and Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from patients with urinary tract infections (UTIs) in 9 hospitals during June to November 1988 were compared with those in the same period of previous year according to a classification, uncomplicated UTIs, complicated UTIs without indwelling catheter, and complicated UTIs with indwelling catheter. No remarkable changes were found in sensitivities of E. coli, Proteus spp., Citrobacter spp. and S. marcescens. The sensitivity of Klebsiella spp. to cephems decreased in complicated UTI without indwelling catheter and increased in complicated UTI with indwelling catheter. The sensitivity of Enterobacter spp. to third generation cephems decreased in complicated UTI with indwelling catheter. Sensitivities of P. aeruginosa to aspoxicillin and cefsulodin increased. The number of resistant strains to new quinolones increased slightly.     

Effect of combination of cefsulodin and mecillinam

The effect of cefsulodin in combination with mecillinam was examined against a wide range of bacterial species. The antibacterial spectrum was widened by the combination of cefsulodin and mecillinam in the ratio of 5:1 and 10:1. In overall observations, in the in vitro test, a synergistic effect against clinical isolates was found on Klebsiella pneumoniae, Citrobacter freundii, Enterobacter cloacae, Serratia marcescens, proteus mirabilis and Proteus vulgaris, and an additive effect was found on Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Proteus morganii, Proteus rettgeri, Proteus inconstans and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In in vivo tests, a synergistic effect was observed on S. marcescens TN 66 and K. pneumoniae DT infections and an additive effect was observed on S. aureus 308 A-1, E. coli O-111 and T-7, C. freundii TN 518, E. cloacae TN 603, P. vulgaris GN 4712, P. morganii Tn 373 and P. aeruginosa U 31 infections.