New Antibiotic Successfully Treats Pneumonia
Oral solithromycin, a novel macrolide, is noninferior to moxifloxacin in treating patients with community-acquired bacterial pneumonia, according to new research.
To determine whether solithromycin is as effective and safe as moxifloxacin, researchers randomly selected 860 adults aged 18 years and older who had acute pneumonia registered at 114 clinics in North America, Latin America, Europe, and South Africa.
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Researchers randomized a group of patients to take either oral solithromycin for 5 days or moxifloxacin for 7 days.
After following the patients for 28 to 35 days after the first dose, researchers found that solithromycin was noninferior to moxifloxacin: About 78% of patients in each group saw an improvement in at least 2 of 4 symptoms within 72 hours of taking the first dose.
Mild side effects—including diarrhea, headache, and dizziness—were reported by 10% of patients in the solithromycin group and 13% of those in the moxifloxacin group.
“Oral solithromycin was noninferior to oral moxifloxacin for treatment of patients with community-acquired bacterial pneumonia, showing the potential to restore macrolide monotherapy for this indication,” researchers concluded.
—Amanda Balbi
Reference:
Barrera CM, Mykietiuk A, Metev H, et al. Efficacy and safety of oral solithromycin versus oral moxifloxacin for treatment of community-acquired bacterial pneumonia: A global, double-blind, multicentre, randomised, active-controlled, non-inferiority trial (SOLITAIRE-ORAL). Lancet. Published online February 4, 2016. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(16)00017-7.