Streptomycin treatment of salmonella enteritis in infants

Abstract

Summary<ul><li>1.Five infants infected with S. typhimurium, were treated with streptomycin;four of them by oral administration only, one with combined oral and parenteral therapy.</li><li>2.The clinical course of the infection was rather mild in the treated and untreated infants. The effect on the symptoms of the disease could not be appraised.</li><li>3.Doses from 25 to 100 mg. orally given at intervals of three hours succeeded in suppressing the growth of the normal fecal bacteria as well as the pathogenic organism.</li><li>4.Discontinuance of treatment resulted in quick reappearance of S. typhimuriumand the normal fecal flora.</li><li>5.Salmonella organisms isolated after the end of treatment showed noincreased streptomycin resistance.</li><li>6.Almost identical results were obtained in animal experiments.</li><li>7.The possible therapeutic value of the limited bacteriostatic effect ofstreptomycin in salmonellosis is discussed.</li></ul>