TY - JOUR
T1 - Weekly oral azithromycin as prophylaxis for agents causing acute respiratory disease
AU - Gray, Gregory C.
AU - McPhate, Dennis C.
AU - Leinonen, Maija
AU - Cassell, Gail H.
AU - Deperalta, Eduardo P.
AU - Putnam, Shannon D.
AU - Karcher, Jennifer A.
AU - Sawyer, Mark H.
AU - Laurila, Aino
AU - Connor, James D.
N1 - Funding Information:
This represents report no. 96-13, supported by the Naval Medical Research and Development Command, Bethesda, Maryland, Department of the Navy, under work unit no. 61102A0101.BKX.6425.
PY - 1998
Y1 - 1998
N2 - Since the 1950s the U.S. military has used intramuscular injections of benzathine penicillin G (BPG) to control outbreaks of respiratory disease. In an effort to find an alternative prophylaxis, a randomized field trial was conducted among 1,016 male U.S. Marine trainee volunteers at high risk for respiratory disease. Participants were evaluated for evidence of acute respiratory infection by serological tests on pretraining and posttraining sera (63 days apart). Oral azithromycin prophylaxis (500 mg/w) outperformed BPG, preventing infection from Streptococcus pyogenes (Efficacy [E] = 84%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 63%-93%), Streptococcus pneumoniae (E = 80%; 95% CI, 50%-92%), Mycoplasma pneumoniae (E = 64%; 95% CI, 25%-83%), and Chlamydia pneumoniae (E = 58%; 95% CI, 15%-79%) in comparison with results in a no-treatment group. Azithromycin group subjects reported few side effects and less respiratory symptoms than the BPG and no-treatment groups. According to serological tests, oral azithromycin is an effective alternative prophylaxis to BPG for military populations.
AB - Since the 1950s the U.S. military has used intramuscular injections of benzathine penicillin G (BPG) to control outbreaks of respiratory disease. In an effort to find an alternative prophylaxis, a randomized field trial was conducted among 1,016 male U.S. Marine trainee volunteers at high risk for respiratory disease. Participants were evaluated for evidence of acute respiratory infection by serological tests on pretraining and posttraining sera (63 days apart). Oral azithromycin prophylaxis (500 mg/w) outperformed BPG, preventing infection from Streptococcus pyogenes (Efficacy [E] = 84%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 63%-93%), Streptococcus pneumoniae (E = 80%; 95% CI, 50%-92%), Mycoplasma pneumoniae (E = 64%; 95% CI, 25%-83%), and Chlamydia pneumoniae (E = 58%; 95% CI, 15%-79%) in comparison with results in a no-treatment group. Azithromycin group subjects reported few side effects and less respiratory symptoms than the BPG and no-treatment groups. According to serological tests, oral azithromycin is an effective alternative prophylaxis to BPG for military populations.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=17344373355&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=17344373355&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1086/516275
DO - 10.1086/516275
M3 - Article
C2 - 9455517
AN - SCOPUS:17344373355
SN - 1058-4838
VL - 26
SP - 103
EP - 110
JO - Clinical Infectious Diseases
JF - Clinical Infectious Diseases
IS - 1
ER -