Are Fluoroquinolones Superior Antibiotics for the Treatment of Community-Acquired Pneumonia?

• DOI: 10.1007/s11908-012-0251-y
• Publication Date: 2012-03-13T09:28:15Z
• Authors: Timothy E. Albertson; Brian M. Morrissey; Andrew L. Chan
• Keywords: 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; 3. Good health

Various guidelines for the antibiotic treatment of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) are presented that include fluoroquinolone antibiotics. The efficacy of current fluoroquinolone antibiotics in the treatment of CAP is summarized. Healthcare resource utilization and shortened duration of clinical symptoms have been shown in some, but not all of CAP trials utilizing fluoroquinolone antibiotics. Although evidence for both the clinical and microbiological efficacy of fluoroquinolone antibiotics is abundant, no convincing data demonstrates that they are superior to other standard antibiotics included in CAP guidelines.