Herein, we present pharmacokinetic and tissue penetration data for oral tedizolid in hospitalized patients with diabetic foot infections (DFI) compared with healthy volunteers. Participants received oral tedizolid phosphate 200 mg every 24 h for 3 doses to achieve steady state. A microdialysis catheter was inserted into the subcutaneous tissue near the margin of the wound for patients or into thigh tissue of volunteers. Following the third dose, 12 blood and 14 dialysate fluid samples were collected over 24 h to characterize tedizolid concentrations in plasma and interstitial extracellular fluid of soft tissue. Mean ± standard deviation (SD) tedizolid pharmacokinetic parameters in plasma for patients compared with volunteers, respectively, were as follows: maximum concentration (), 1.5 ± 0.5 versus 2.7 ± 1.1 mg/liter ( = 0.005); time to () (median [range]), 5.9 (1.2 to 8.0) versus 2.5 (2.0 to 3.0 h) ( = 0.003); half-life (t), 9.1 ± 3.6 versus 8.9 ± 2.2 h ( = 0.932); and plasma area under the concentration-time curve for the dosing interval (AUC ), 18.5 ± 9.7 versus 28.7 ± 9.6 mg · h/liter ( = 0.004). The tissue area under the concentration-time curve (AUC ) for the dosing interval was 3.4 ± 1.5 versus 5.2 ± 1.6 mg · h/liter ( = 0.075). Tissue penetration median (range) was 1.1 (0.3 to 1.6) versus 0.8 (0.7 to 1.0) ( = 0.351). Despite lower plasma and delayed values for patients with DFI relative to healthy volunteers, the penetration into and exposure to tissue were similar. Based on available pharmacodynamic thresholds for tedizolid, the plasma and tissue exposures using the oral 200 mg once-daily regimen are suitable for further study in treatment of DFI.

Patient satisfaction is a phenomenon that has become influential in the inpatient setting with the introduction of the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Practitioners and Systems (HCAHPS) survey in the United States. Patient satisfaction is a key goal of healthcare organizations and presents some challenges to providing quality patient care. Areas covered: This review will focus on the challenges patient satisfaction presents in the healthcare field, with a key focus on factors that influence patient satisfaction, the common problem of inappropriate antibiotic prescriptions and the importance of the patient-provider relationship. Expert commentary: While it is apparent that focused efforts to better understand patient satisfaction are necessary and that implementation of processes to enhance satisfaction are warranted, attention must be directed so that these interventions do not adversely influence the efficiency or quality of care. Continuous long-term relationships with healthcare providers encourage patient loyalty, effective healthcare and good lifestyle habits.

Ceftolozane-tazobactam displays potent activity against Gram-negative bacteria that can cause diabetic foot infections (DFI), making it an attractive treatment option when few alternatives exist. The pharmacokinetics and tissue penetration of ceftolozane-tazobactam at 1.5 g every 8 h (q8h) in patients ( = 10) with DFI were compared with those in healthy volunteers ( = 6) using microdialysis. In the patient participants, the median values of the pharmacokinetic parameters for ceftolozane in total plasma were as follows: maximum concentration (), 55.2 μg/ml (range, 40.9 to 169.3 μg/ml); half-life (), 3.5 h (range, 2.3 to 4.7 h); and area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) from time zero to 8 h (AUC), 191.6 μg · h/ml (range, 147.1 to 286.6 μg · h/ml). The median AUC for tissue (AUC; where AUC was the AUC for tissue for ceftolozane)/AUC for plasma for each antibiotic corrected by the fraction of free drug (AUC) was 0.75 (range, 0.35 to 1.00), resulting in a mean free time above 4 μg/ml (the susceptibility breakpoint) in tissue of 99.8% (range, 87.5 to 100%). In the patient participants, the median values of the pharmacokinetic parameters for tazobactam in total plasma were as follows:, 14.2 μg/ml (range, 7.6 to 64.2 μg/ml); , 2.0 h (range, 0.7 to 2.4 h); and AUC, 27.1 μg · h/ml (range, 15.0 to 70.0 μg · h/ml). The AUC (where AUC was the AUC from time zero to the time of the last measureable concentration in tissue for tazobactam)/AUC for tazobactam was 1.18 (range, 0.54 to 1.44). In the healthy volunteers, the median values of the pharmacokinetic parameters for ceftolozane in total plasma were as follows: , 91.5 μg/ml (range, 65.7 to 110.7 μg/ml);, 1.9 h (range, 1.6 to 2.1 h); and AUC, 191.3 μg · h/ml (range, 118.1 to 274.3 μg · h/ml). The median AUC/AUC was 0.87 (range, 0.54 to 2.20), resulting in a mean free time above 4 μg/ml in tissue of 93.8% (range, 87.5 to 100%). In the healthy volunteers, the median values of the pharmacokinetic parameters for tazobactam in total plasma were as follows: , 17.5 μg/ml (range, 15.4 to 27.3 μg/ml);, 0.7 h (range, 0.6 to 0.8 h); and AUC, 22.2 μg · h/ml (range, 19.2 to 36.4 μg · h/ml). The AUC/AUC for tazobactam was 0.85 (range, 0.63 to 2.10). Both ceftolozane and tazobactam penetrated into subcutaneous tissue with exposures similar to those of free drug in plasma in both patients with DFI and healthy volunteers. These data suggest that ceftolozane-tazobactam at 1.5 g q8h can achieve the optimal exposure with activity against susceptible Gram-negative pathogens in the tissue of patients with DFI. (This study has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under identifier NCT02620774.).