Linezolid is a drug that is very active against gram (+) bacteria

A new antibiotic from the oxazalidinone group - linezolid - has high activity against gram-positive microorganisms.

Microbiologists from 7 European countries have determined the sensitivity of 3,382 bacteria isolated from the skin, blood or respiratory tract to linezolid and several other antibacterial drugs.

Strains have been isolated from patients in France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Laboratories in each country independently determined the susceptibility of microorganisms to antibiotics using the micro-dilution method and E-tests in accordance with NCCLS standards.

Tested: sensitive to methicillin and resistant to methicillin Staphylococcus aureus, sensitive to methicillin and resistant to methicillin Staphylococcus epidermidis, Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Enterococcus spp., As well as Moraxella catarrhalis and Haemophilus influenzae. The susceptibility of pathogens to the following antibiotics has been determined: oxacillin, vancomycin, gentamicin, ciprofloxacin, erythromycin, clindamycin, amoxicillin / clavulanate, ampicillin and penicillin.

The researchers noted that microorganisms resistant to other antibacterial drugs remain sensitive to linezolid.

Linezolid was active against all (+) grams of cocci with an MPC50 of 0.5-4 mg / L. It was only compared to M. catarrhalis and H. Influenzae that the new antibiotic had moderate activity (MPC50 = 4-16 mg / l).