Changes in periurethral microflora after antimicrobial drugs
Article Abstract:
There are many different types of bacteria that live on or inside of the human body. These bacteria do not cause infections and even provide some protection against infection by preventing other types of bacteria from growing in the body. When a patient is treated with antibiotic drugs for long periods of time, the antibiotics can kill some of the naturally occurring bacteria in the body (flora) and this can allow other types of bacteria to grow and cause infections. Since urinary tract infections are fairly common, the effects of two different antibiotic drugs on the flora in the urinary tract were examined in 18 girls between the ages of 3 and 13 years. All of the girls came to the hospital emergency room with either an inner ear infection (otitis media) or a respiratory tract infection requiring treatment with antibiotics. Ten of the girls were treated with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and eight were treated with amoxicillin. Samples of bacteria in the urinary tract were taken before, during and three weeks after treatment with the antibiotics. Prior to drug treatment, all urinary tract samples contained the normal bacteria and showed no signs of infection. Treatment with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole did not kill the naturally occurring bacteria in the urinary tract. However, treatment with amoxicillin reduced the number of bacteria and as a result there was an overgrowth of enterobacteria. Three weeks after treatment with amoxicillin the naturally occurring bacteria reappeared and the enterobacteria disappeared. It is concluded that treatment with certain antibiotics may kill some of the flora in the urinary tract, thereby increasing the susceptibility to infection. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: Archives of Disease in Childhood
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0003-9888
Year: 1991
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Group B streptococcus endocarditis following second-trimester abortion
Article Abstract:
Infections with the bacteria Streptococcus agalactiae most commonly occur in patients with chronic disease or in women giving birth and their infants. Endocarditis (infection of the heart lining) usually occurs when bacteria, which may be in the blood transiently, are able to lodge on the heart lining due to disruption of its normally smooth structure by scarring or congenital defect. A case is reported of an 18-year-old woman who developed endocarditis caused by Streptococcus agalactiae following an abortion at 20 weeks of pregnancy, which was otherwise uneventful. The patient was given preventive antibiotics for five days, but developed fever, chills, odorous vaginal discharge, and joint pains. A second antibiotic was given for one week, and the patient tested negative for gonorrhea. The fever persisted for several weeks, and she was hospitalized when chest pain, cough, and chills developed. Tests showed streptococcal bacteria in blood, and further testing indicated that there was growth on a heart valve. The patient improved following intravenous treatment with antibiotics. Breathing difficulty developed and was linked to pulmonary emboli, bacterial particles loosened and lodged in the lungs (which can be fatal). The patient's condition resolved with continued antibiotic therapy over six weeks. The case is unusual in that there was no known defect in the patient's heart valve. Cases of endocarditis following abortion have been previously reported, but in general this is now a rare event following obstetric delivery or abortion. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: Archives of Internal Medicine
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0003-9926
Year: 1990
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