Role of oral antibiotics in treatment of community-acquired lower respiratory tract infections

Abstract

Amoxicillin/clavulanic acid has been one of the first choice treatments for community-acquired lower respiratory tract infection since its introduction nearly 15 years ago. Since then, it has become the “gold standard” against which most new oral antimicrobials are compared, but none of these newer agents has demonstrated a superior efficacy. To the contrary, two recent studies comparing amoxicillin/clavulanic acid with azithromycin, cefixime, or ciprofloxacin in the treatment of acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis have demonstrated a higher efficacy rate for amoxicillin/clavulanic acid.