Adding azithromycin to the standard antibiotic treatment for early Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections is associated with fewer pulmonary exacerbations in children with cystic fibrosis, results from a Phase 3 trial show.
Trial findings were published in the study, “Azithromycin for Early Pseudomonas Infection in Cystic Fibrosis: The Optimize Randomized Trial,” in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a type of bacteria that commonly infects the lower airways of CF patients, and is associated with an increased inflammatory response, reduced lung function, increased cost of care, and decreased survival.
The first-line therapy for patients with P. aeruginosa is anti-pseudomonal antibiotics such as tobramycin inhalation solution (TIS), whose effectiveness has been demonstrated in multiple clinical trials. With TIS, early P. aeruginosa infections can be eradicated in up to 90% of cases.
