Comparative in vitro activity of the new oral cephalosporin Bay v 3522 against aerobic and anaerobic bacteria.

The in vitro activity of the new oral cephalosporin Bay v 3522 against 229 aerobic and 330 anaerobic clinical isolates was determined using the agar dilution technique. For comparison, amoxicillin, amoxicillin/clavulanate, cefaclor, cefadroxil, cefuroxime, cephalexin, ciprofloxacin, clindamycin, co-trimoxazole, doxycycline, erythromycin and metronidazole (only anaerobic bacteria) were tested. Bay v 3522 was found to have high activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus pyogenes, Branhamella catarrhalis, Haemophilus influenzae, anaerobic cocci, Propionibacterium acnes, Clostridium perfringens and fusobacteria. When tested against a higher inoculum or using the broth dilution technique, the activity of Bay v 3522 showed little dependence on inoculum size and the bactericidal activity was similar to inhibitory activity in most bacterial groups. Bay v 3522 may be useful in the treatment of skin, soft tissue and respiratory tract infections. Clinical studies are thus warranted.