Malignant otitis externa (MOE) is a potentially fatal infection of the external auditory canal caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa in a majority of cases. Treatment of MOE has changed over the years. ...Surgical debridement of all infected tissue is no longer considered the treatment of choice and has been replaced by localized surgical debridement supplemented with long-term antimicrobial chemotherapy. The recent availability of the fluoroquinolones and in particular ciprofloxacin has opened up new therapeutic opportunities.
Ro 13-9904, a new broad-spectrum, beta-lactamase-resistant, cephalosporin, was given as a single i.m. injection at doses of 500, 250, and 125 mg in 3 groups of male patients each consisting of 10, 6, ...and 6 patients respectively, suffering from uncomplicated acute but recurrent gonococcal urethritis. All patients were cured both clinically and bacteriologically without relapsing after a 7-day follow-up. 11 patients suffering from chronic urinary tract infections without flow obstruction but with underlying chronic pyelonephritis in 6, were treated for 7 days with 500 mg of Ro 13-9904 i.m., every 12 h. E. coli and P. mirabilis were the main isolated pathogens. Treatment was successful in all with only one bacteriological relapse during the follow-up period. The drug's tolerance was satisfactory except for moderate local pain in most of the patients.