A double-blind, randomized study of three antimicrobial regimens in the prevention of infections after elective colorectal surgery.

The objective of this study was to assess the prophylactic efficacy of cefoxitin, ceftizoxime, and metronidazole-gentamicin in colorectal surgery. A double-blind, randomized prospective clinical trial design was used in a Canadian tertiary care teaching hospital. Patients were randomized to one of three treatment groups and received three doses of a study drug (30 min preoperative and 2 postoperative doses at 12 and 24 h).

Evaluation of the use of cefuroxime and cefuroxime axetil in an intravenous-oral stepdown program.

Objective: To characterize cefuroxime and cefuroxime axetil use under the influence of a parenteral-to-oral (iv-po) stepdown program.

Design: Open single-center retrospective review.

Setting: Tertiary care teaching and referral Canadian hospital with 1100 beds.

Double-blind comparison of cefazolin and ceftizoxime for prophylaxis against infections following elective biliary tract surgery.

Antibiotics have been shown to reduce the incidence of wound infections after elective biliary tract procedures. Cefazolin and cefoxitin are among the agents most commonly promoted for this purpose. Cefoxitin has been substituted with ceftizoxime in many institutions; however, the role of ceftizoxime as a prophylactic agent in this setting has not been determined.

Antibiotic therapeutic interchange program: six years of experience.

To assess the long-term impact of a therapeutic interchange program on the use of target antimicrobial drugs, we conducted a retrospective study of target drug utilization at our institution--a 1,000-bed Canadian tertiary care teaching hospital. Data were assessed to determine target drug utilization, incidence of therapeutic interchanges, and patient-target drug exposures. Results showed that the incidence of therapeutic interchanges per patient-target drug exposure decreased from a mean of 23% to 2%, resulting in a total net savings for the target drugs of approximately $1.

Implementation and evaluation of a standardized herpes simplex virus prophylaxis protocol on a leukemia/bone marrow transplant unit.

Objective: To assess the impact of a standardized acyclovir prophylaxis protocol for the prevention of herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection and disease in bone marrow transplant and leukemic patients.

Design: Two-phase, open sequential study involving prospective patient monitoring and retrospective health record review.

Setting: Tertiary care teaching hospital.