Cloxacillin in treatment of acute osteomyelitis.

Abstract

It has been said that when treating acute osteomyelitis, in this the era of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, the given to the patient when first seen is usually chosen by inspired guesswork (Mercer, 1964). If an were available to which all commonly encountered pathogens were sensitive then this guesswork would be eliminated. It would be unnecessary to change an or give a combination of antibiotics when organism-sensitivity reports became available (Neligan and Elderkin, 1965). Mann (1963) attributes the progression of the disease from the acute to the chronic phase in 7 out of 59 cases reviewed in 1963 to the initial use of the wrong antibiotic (as shown by later sensitivity reports). It is probable that many cases of chronic osteomyelitis, often associated with the appearance of antibiotic-resistant organisms, are due to inadequate therapy and delay in the onset of treatment.