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Short Antibiotic Therapy good enough for Community-Acquired Pneumonia: Lancet
Duration of antibiotic therapy is a key decision in the management of community-acquired pneumonia. In a recent study, researchers have found that discontinuing β-lactam treatment after three days was non-inferior to 8 days of treatment in patients with community-acquired pneumonia. The study findings were published in The Lancet on March 27, 2021.
Shortening the duration of therapy could lead to fewer antibiotic side-effects, less pressure for antimicrobial resistance, reduced costs, and a reduced risk of bacterial superinfection. However, these benefits must be weighed against the potential harm from recurrent illness. Therefore, researchers of the Raymond-Poincaré University Hospital, AP-HP, Paris Saclay University, France, conducted a study to examine the need for an additional 5-day course of β-lactam therapy among patients with community-acquired pneumonia who were stable after three days of treatment.
It was a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled, non-inferiority trial in 16 centres in France. The researchers included a total of 310 eligible patients with severe community-acquired pneumonia. They randomly assigned the patients to receive either β-lactam treatment (n=153) (oral amoxicillin 1 g plus clavulanate 125 mg three times a day) or placebo (n=157) for 5 extra days. The major outcome assessed was cure 15 days after first antibiotic intake, defined by apyrexia (temperature ≤37·8°C), resolution or improvement of respiratory symptoms, and no additional antibiotic treatment for any cause. The researchers choose a non-inferiority margin of 10 percentage points. They also assessed safety outcomes in the intention-to-treat [ITT] population.
Key findings of the study were:
- In the ITT analysis, the researchers noted that cure at day 15 occurred in 77% of participants in the placebo group and 68% of participants in the β-lactam group (between-group difference of 9·42%), indicating non-inferiority.
- Results of the per-protocol analysis also indicated non-inferiority, with 78% of patients in the placebo group and 68% of patients in the β-lactam group cured at day 15 (between-group difference, 9.44 percentage points).
- The observed similar incidence of adverse events between the treatment groups (14% in the placebo group and 19% in the β-lactam group).
- The most common adverse event was digestive disorders. Also, by day 30, they reported three deaths in the placebo group and two deaths in the beta-lactam group.
The authors concluded, "Among patients admitted to hospital with community-acquired pneumonia who met clinical stability criteria, discontinuing β-lactam treatment after 3 days was non-inferior to 8 days of treatment. These findings could allow a substantial reduction of antibiotic consumption."
For further information:
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(21)00313-5/fulltext
Medical Dialogues Bureau consists of a team of passionate medical/scientific writers, led by doctors and healthcare researchers. Our team efforts to bring you updated and timely news about the important happenings of the medical and healthcare sector. Our editorial team can be reached at editorial@medicaldialogues.in.
Dr Kamal Kant Kohli-MBBS, DTCD- a chest specialist with more than 30 years of practice and a flair for writing clinical articles, Dr Kamal Kant Kohli joined Medical Dialogues as a Chief Editor of Medical News. Besides writing articles, as an editor, he proofreads and verifies all the medical content published on Medical Dialogues including those coming from journals, studies,medical conferences,guidelines etc. Email: drkohli@medicaldialogues.in. Contact no. 011-43720751