Effectiveness of the antimicrobial removal device, BACTEC 16B medium, and thiol broth in neutralizing antibacterial activities of imipenem, norfloxacin, and related agents.

The Antimicrobial Removal Device (ARD), BACTEC 16B medium, and Thiol broth were evaluated for their effectiveness in reducing the activity of imipenem (IPM), cefoxitin, moxalactam, and ceftazidime in blood samples. In addition, the capability of the ARD and Thiol broth to bind norfloxacin and the ARD to bind oxolinic and nalidixic acids in urine samples was investigated. At the highest concentrations of the drugs tested (32 micrograms/ml for the four beta-lactams and 256 micrograms/ml for the three quinolinecarboxylic acids), there was at least a 95% reduction in the in vitro activity of each of the antibacterial agents for treated versus untreated samples. Of the compounds tested in the ARD system, the organic acids were more completely removed than were the beta-lactams. The Thiol broth was more effective than the ARD and the BACTEC 16B medium in inactivating imipenem, but it had no effect on the antibacterial activity of norfloxacin.