Study design (if review, criteria of inclusion for studies)
controlled study
Participants
22 children with severe CF hospitalized with respiratory exacerbations
Interventions
cloxacillin or carbenicillin plus gentamicin administered intravenously for ten days
Outcome measures
sputum coulture, clinical outcome, chest scores
Main results
Other aspects of therapy were constant. The groups were comparable in all respects and Pseudomonas aeruginosa was the predominant sputum pathogen in most patients. Clinical improvement, chest radiograph changes, evidence of airway obstruction, and bacteriologic flora of sputum were no different regardless of the regimen used.
Authors' conclusions
These results suggest that the use of anti-Pseudomonas medication in these children may not always be necessary. These observations need to be confirmed by blind-controlled studies in larger numbers of patients with mild as well as severe respiratory involvement.