OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical and microbiologic efficacy and safety of norfloxacin for acute diarrhea. DESIGN: Double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical multicenter trial. SETTING: Six departments of infectious disease. PARTICIPANTS: Patients 12 years of age or older with a history of acute diarrhea lasting 5 or fewer days. Eighty-five percent of patients (511/598) were evaluable for efficacy. Of these evaluable patients, 70% had traveled abroad within the previous 6 weeks. INTERVENTIONS: Patients received either norfloxacin, 400 mg, or placebo twice daily for 5 days. MEASUREMENTS: Enteric pathogens were isolated in 51% of the evaluable patients: Campylobacter species in 29%, Salmonella species in 16%, Shigella species in 3.5%, and other pathogens in 2.6%. RESULTS: Norfloxacin had a favorable overall effect compared with placebo (cure rate, 63% compared with 51%; P = 0.003). There were statistically favorable effects in culture-positive patients, patients with salmonellosis, and severely ill patients but not in culture-negative patients or patients with campylobacteriosis or shigellosis. A significant difference was noted between norfloxacin and placebo in median time to cure among all evaluable patients (3 compared with 4 days, P = 0.02) and in patients with campylobacteriosis (3 compared with 5 days, P = 0.05) but not in patients. Culture-positive, but not culture-negative patients, in the norfloxacin group had significantly fewer loose stools per day compared with patients in the placebo group from day 2 onward (P less than or equal to 0.01). Norfloxacin was significantly less effective than placebo in eliminating Salmonella species on days 12 to 17 (18% compared with 49%, P = 0.006), whereas the opposite was true for Campylobacter species (70% compared with 50%, P = 0.03). In six of nine patients tested, norfloxacin-resistant Campylobacter species (MIC, greater than or equal to 32 micrograms/mL) appeared after norfloxacin treatment. CONCLUSION: Empiric treatment reduced the intensity and, to some extent, the duration of symptoms of acute diarrhea. The effect was restricted to patients who had bacterial enteropathogens or who were severely ill. The clinical usefulness of this treatment is limited by the fact that norfloxacin seems to delay the elimination of salmonella and to induce resistance in campylobacter.

Acute Disease↗

PubMed1989

[Future psychiatrists should be knowledgeable about neuropsychiatry].

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Neuropsychology↗

PubMed1988

Magnetic resonance imaging in the diagnosis of spinal epidural abscess.

In 3 patients with epidural abscess, 2 in the cervical spine and 1 in the lumbar spine the definite diagnosis was established by magnetic resonance imaging (MR). In 1 patient computerized tomography was performed but the correct diagnosis was revealed only by MR. The infections were all acute and due to Staphylococcus aureus organisms. One patient developed a tetraparesis on the third day, before the diagnosis was established or antibiotic treatment initiated. The other 2 showed only minor and passing neurologic deficits. None was subjected to laminectomy. In 2 cases the diagnosis was confirmed by puncture. None of the patients had a preceding trauma or a known focus for the staphylococcal infection.

Abscess↗

PubMed1987

Cryptosporidiosis in southern Sweden.

Two different groups of patients with diarrhoea, altogether 1,478 individuals, were examined for cryptosporidium oocysts. The technique used was feces concentration and staining according to a modified Ziehl-Neelsen method. 20 cases of cryptosporidiosis (3%) were found among 698 consecutive patients with acute gastroenteritis. In feces samples sent for parasitological examination from 780 patients, cryptosporidia were found on 9 occasions (1%). None of 519 healthy persons excreted cryptosporidia. 19/29 patients with cryptosporidiosis had recently been abroad and in 8 of these additional enteric pathogens were found. The median duration of diarrhoea was 14 days. All patients except 1 were cryptosporidia-negative in faeces within 2 months. An immunosuppressed patient excreted cryptosporidia for 14 months.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1984

Acyclovir versus vidarabine in herpes simplex encephalitis. Randomised multicentre study in consecutive Swedish patients.

127 patients with suspected herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) were entered in a prospective randomised study of acyclovir 10 mg/kg 8-hourly versus vidarabine 15 mg/kg daily for 10 days. The patients were consecutive and nearly all Swedish cases of HSE were included; they were treated in six university infectious diseases departments. The diagnosis of HSE was verified by brain biopsy and/or antibody responses in serum and cerebrospinal fluid. Of 53 confirmed cases of HSE (corresponding to 2 X 3 cases per million inhabitants per year in Sweden), 51 (27 acyclovir, 24 vidarabine) were evaluable for analysis of efficacy. The mortality was 19% in the acyclovir-treated group versus 50% in the vidarabine group (p = 0.04). At 6 months of observation 15 (56%) of 27 acyclovir-treated patients had returned to normal life compared with 3 (13%) of 24 vidarabine-treated patients (p = 0.002); and the numbers who died or had severe sequelae were 9 (33%) and 19 (76%), respectively (p = 0.005). No important or new adverse events were recognised.

Acyclovir↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Erysipelas and group G streptococci.

In a prospective study, 73 patients with erysipelas were studied bacteriologically, serologically and clinically. Pathogenic bacteria were isolated from 41% of the patients. Group G streptococci (GGS) were found as frequently as group A streptococci (GAS), in 12.5% and 15% of patients, respectively. Staphylococcus aureus was isolated in 10%, and streptococci groups B, C and D were isolated from one case each. Raised ASO titres were found among patients with GAS and GGS, while a rise in ADNase B titre was found only in patients with GAS. Patients with GGS tended to be older than other patients. Otherwise no clinical differences were noticed. The infection was located to the lower extremity in 68%. Predisposing factors were observed in 44% of the patients, predominantly local circulatory insufficiency and malignancies. In 55% a possible portal of entry was present. GGS seems to be a common cause of erysipelas, especially among patients older than 50 years.

Adult↗