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Inhalation of antibiotics during i.v. therapy
- Question
- Hello,
is it correct not to inhale antibiotics during an i.v. therapy (tobramycin and meropenem) in order not to damage too much the organs (kidneys etc.)?
I am a bit sceptical, to inhale at least for 14 days only twice a day with hypertonic saline 6% and once a day with DNAse.
I would be pleased about an answer,
Best regards,
A. - Answer
- Hello,
during an i.v. antibiotic therapy an addtional inhalation of antibiotics should not be done because of possible side effects.
Best regards,
Dr. Christian Hügel - 03.03.2016
- Offcial guidelines point out, that there is no data that supports an additional benefit of inhalative antibiotic drugs combinded with an i.v. antibiotic therapy. Of course, if the same antibiotic drug is additionally inhaled during an i.v. therapy, the risk of increased side effects is high.
However, if another class of antibiotic drugs is inhaled than the one given intravenously (e.g. Tobramycin i.v. and inhaled Colistin) this risk is supposed to be much lower and one would assume an additional anti-bacterial effect. Unfortunately, there is not data that could prove those expectations. Therefore, it is generally not recommended to administer an inhalative antibiotic drug during i.v. therapy, but can sometimes be an individually taken decision by the physicians in charge, always provided that not the same class of antibiotics is used for the different routes."
D. d'Alquen
