PMID: 2097147Jan 1, 1990Paper

Topical antibiotic therapy: current status and future prospects

Drugs Under Experimental and Clinical Research
E A Eady, J H Cove

Abstract

As we enter a new decade, topical antibiotics are the subject of much renewed interest and are being used on a wider scale than ever before. The reasons for using topical rather than oral therapy for a variety of dermatoses include the reduced risk of systemic side effects, the avoidance of resistance selection in the gut microflora, the higher achievable concentration of antibiotic at the site of action and the overall usage of less drug. Somewhat surprisingly, treatment costs are not reduced by the use of topical therapy. The number of antibiotics licensed for topical use has increased in recent years and now includes representatives of the tetracycline, macrolide, lincosamide, aminoglycoside and peptide families of antibiotics in addition to fusidic acid, chloramphenicol and pseudomonic acid. Opinions regarding the clinical efficacy of topical antibiotics are conflicting, and for most indications alternative oral therapies are available. Topical antibiotics are the drugs of choice for the elimination of nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus and for the therapy of eye and external ear infections. They are also effective in the treatment of impetigo and other superficial pyodermas and in the management of localised infected ...Continue Reading

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