New developments in the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections: considerations for the effective use of dalbavancin

Abstract

Dalbavancin, an intravenous glycopeptide, was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in May 2014 for use in adult patients with acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections. The recommended dosing regimen for effective use of dalbavancin is 1,000 mg followed by a 500 mg dose after 1 week. Two multinational, identically designed, non-inferiority trials, DISCOVER 1 and 2, demonstrated similar early clinical success with dalbavancin compared to vancomycin with an option to switch to oral linezolid. In a recently published non-inferiority trial, a single-dose regimen of dalbavancin was compared to the traditional two-dose administration and was found to have a non-inferior clinical response. In the aforementioned trials, dalbavancin was well tolerated, with patients experiencing transient adverse events of mild to moderate severity. The prolonged half-life, excellent skin and soft tissue penetration, bactericidal activity against Gram-positive bacteria including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, and convenient dosing make dalbavancin a reasonable option for the treatment of acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections in adult patients who have tried and failed other therapies.

Potential savings through single-dose intravenous Dalbavancin in long-term MRSA infection treatment – a health economic analysis using German DRG data

“…The results are in line with other studies that have investigated the economic effects of Dalbavancin [31], [32], [33]. Single-dose intravenous Dalbavancin shortens the LOS and thus results in cost savings.…”

Comparative In Vitro Activities of New Antibiotics for the Treatment of Skin Infections

“…Collectively, the reviewed studies highlight the comparative in vitro activity of agents approved over the past 5 years against bacterial pathogens that cause skin infections. An important characteristic of these antibiotics is their broad-spectrum activity against gram-positive pathogens implicated in skin infections, including resistant organisms [34–38]. Moreover, delafloxacin is also active against gram-negative pathogens [17–20].…”

Review: A Safety Profile of Dalbavancin for On- and Off-Label Utilization

“…12 The use of dalbavancin is also economically advantageous, considering not so much the cost of the molecule, but its speed of action, the possibility of reducing hospitalization time compared to standard therapy for skin infections, the lower risk of re-hospitalization, and a faster resumption of work. 10,[13][14][15][16] Dalbavancin is a semisynthetic molecule derived from a glycopeptide. 17 Its mechanism of action consists in the inhibition of the transglycosylation and transpeptidation of peptidoglycans, binding to the C-terminal residues d-alanyl-d-alanine.…”