The Treatment of Infants With Oxacillin Sodium

Abstract

OXACILLIN SODIUM has been demonstrated to effectively inhibit penicillin-sensitive and resistant staphylococci in vitro at concentrations readily obtainable in vivo¹ and together with other similar penicillinase-resistant penicillins, is considered a drug of choice in staphylococcal infection.² As young infants are particularly susceptible to staphylococcal infection, information concerning the effectiveness of oxacillin sodium in treating such infections and the pharmacology of oxacillin sodium in such patients is needed. The study reported herein provides information regarding the serum concentrations of oxacillin sodium achieved with varying dosage schedules in young infants, the effectiveness of the drug in the treatment of severe staphylococcal infection in this age group, and the toxicity of the drug in newborns and in older infants. Material and Methods All patients less than 2 years of age admitted to the service wards or nurseries of the Department of Pediatrics, Mercy Hospital during the period July 1, 1963, to