COLISTIN, a polypeptide antibiotic derived from Aerobacillus colistinus, was introduced by Koyama in Japan in the year 1950.2 Gastrointestinal absorption is limited so that intramuscular injection is required for systemic effect and for this purpose sodium colistimethate (sodium colistin methanesulfonate) has been in use in the United States. This drug has been shown to produce serum levels in proportion to the administered dose 3 which are in excess of those required for inhibition and for bactericidal effect upon many Gram-negative organisms in vitro.4 Most strains of Pseudomonas, Escherichia coli, paracolon, and Klebsiella organisms have been demonstrated to be sensitive by tube dilution studies.5 The toxicity of colistin in older children and adults, though variably reported, has been slight with no residual damage or death.6The study reported herein was devised in an attempt to determine whether colistin methane sulfonate was an effective and safe agent in the prevention and management of common lifethreatening bacterial infections of infancy. The clinical effectiveness, toxicity, both immediate and long-term residual, and the incidence of sig¬ nificant alteration in mucous membrane flora were determined in a large number of infants treated with this drug (in conjunction with oxacillin or bacitracin) on the Mercy Hospital Pediatrie Service. These factors have been evaluated in relation to a high and to a moderate dosage schedule and in relation to the serum levels achieved by the dosage utilized.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.