Antimicrobial Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics in the Treatment of Nosocomial Gram-negative Infections

Raymond Cha, Sarah M. Michi

Abstract

While infections due to multidrug-resistant Gram-negative organisms overwhelm hospitals worldwide, preservation of current antimicrobial treatment options becomes paramount in the face of dwindling development of novel antibiotics. There is extensive data demonstrating that application of pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic principles improves the possibility of enhancing clinical and microbiological outcome. There is expanding evidence demonstrating that unfavorable clinical outcomes and antimicrobial resistance may be suppressed when specific pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic targets are attained for beta-lactam and carbapenem antibiotics. This paper highlights pertinent studies that contribute to the principles and application of these principles.