A Randomized study comparing low dose ciprofloxacin and ofloxacin in the treatment of lower respiratory tract infections

Abstract

An open, randomized study was carried out to compare the efficacy of ciprofloxacin, 250 mg twice daily, and ofloxacin, 200 mg twice daily, in hospitalized patients with lower respiratory tract infections such as bacterial exacerbation of chronic bronchitis or community-acquired pneumonia. Fifty patients were treated in each group. The duration of treatment was 10 to 12 days. Microbiological examinations were carried out on sputum samples taken before, during and after treatment. In both groups, the clinical results were considered to be excellent, with clinical cure in 98% of the patients treated with ciprofloxacin and in 90% of patients treated with ofloxacin. Eradication of the initial sputum isolate was achieved in 98% of the patients of the ciprofloxacin group and in 82% of the patients of the ofloxacin group.