Clinical Findings and Results of a Therapeutic Regimen in Acute Friedländer's Pneumonia

Abstract

Ten unselected patients with Friedlander''s pneumonia were treated with streptomycin and either chloramphenicol or tetracycline. Six patients recovered, decreasing the mortality by comparison with a previous series from 70 to 40%. None of the 4 deaths was considered to be due to failure of the antibiotics used to influence the organism. This series of patients emphasizes the usefulness of sputum smears in making a presumptive diagnosis, the importance of promptly initiating treatment on the basis of such a diagnosis, and the importance of adjunctive measures, in the management of this condition, particularly those aimed at maintaining an open airway.