Clinical results in the treatment of respiratory infections with moxifloxacin.

Respiratory infections are a common source of morbidity and mortality, with pneumonia being the number one cause of death from infectious disease in Western industrialized countries. Initial antibiotic therapy of upper and lower respiratory infections is often empiric, being directed at the pathogens that are most likely to be present. Leading pathogens in respiratory infections are S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae and M. catarrhalis, which have developed considerable resistance problems against previous standard antibiotics like beta-lactams, macrolides and tetracyclines in the last decade. Newly developed quinolones such as moxifloxacin combine enhanced in vitro activity against Gram-positive bacteria with maintenance of activity against Gram-negative organisms. Three comparative, prospective, randomized, double-blind studies in the treatment of community acquired sinusitis, AECB and CAP demonstrated equal or higher efficacy of moxifloxacin in comparison to standard antibiotic therapies.