Penicillin
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Follow the links below to find trusted information about penicillin.
Last reviewed: May 2018
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Penicillin and other antibiotic allergy information | myVMC
Penicillin and antibiotic allergy cause allergic symptoms like rash, swelling and difficulty breathing when an affected person uses antibiotics.
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Antibiotics (anti-bacterials) treatment information | myVMC
Antibiotics are medications that work to kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria and help your body fight the infection. They do not work against viruses.
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Cilicaine Syringe 1.5 Suspension for injection - myDr.com.au
Cilicaine Syringe 1.5 Suspension for injection - Consumer Medicines Information leaflets of prescription and over-the-counter medicines
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Vancomycin - Lab Tests Online AU
Why and when to get tested for vancomycin
Read more on Lab Tests Online website
Timentin Powder for infusion - myDr.com.au
Timentin Powder for infusion - Consumer Medicines Information leaflets of prescription and over-the-counter medicines
Read more on myDr – Consumer Medicine Information website
Antibiotics: Dr Joe Kosterich | myVMC
Antibiotics of all forms are still useful for us, but they should be used whenever necessary
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Tazocin EF Powder for infusion - myDr.com.au
Tazocin EF Powder for infusion - Consumer Medicines Information leaflets of prescription and over-the-counter medicines
Read more on myDr – Consumer Medicine Information website
DBL Piperacillin and Tazobactam Injection - myDr.com.au
DBL Piperacillin and Tazobactam Injection - Consumer Medicines Information leaflets of prescription and over-the-counter medicines
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Amoxycillin Sandoz Tablets - myDr.com.au
Amoxycillin Sandoz Tablets - Consumer Medicines Information leaflets of prescription and over-the-counter medicines
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Tazopip (Powder for infusion) - myDr.com.au
Tazopip (Powder for infusion) - Consumer Medicines Information leaflets of prescription and over-the-counter medicines
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Azithromycin versus penicillin G benzathine for early syphilis | Cochrane
Syphilis is a complex disease that can involve virtually any organ in the body. The World Health Organization estimates that at least 12 million people are infected with syphilis worldwide. Some early research suggested that azithromycin was superior to benzathine penicillin G in the treatment of early syphilis, and that azithromycin can overcome the disadvantages of penicillin G benzathine. This review of three trials failed to identify a difference between azithromycin and benzathine penicillin G for early syphilis in the odds of cure rate, with the result being too imprecise to confidently rule out the superiority of either treatment option. Although gastrointestinal adverse effects were more common in the participants on azithromycin, than in those given benzathine penicillin G, the difference with benzathine penicillin did not reach statistical significance. More research is required in this area.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Intramuscular penicillin for the prevention of early onset group B streptococcal infection in newborn infants | Cochrane
Intramuscular penicillin for the prevention of early onset group B streptococcal infection in newborn infants
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Penicillin reduces the risk of streptococcal throat infections and attacks of rheumatic fever in people who have already had a bout of rheumatic fever | Cochrane
Penicillin reduces the risk of streptococcal throat infections and attacks of rheumatic fever in people who have already had a bout of rheumatic fever
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Antibiotics for syphilis diagnosed during pregnancy | Cochrane
Penicillin is effective in curing syphilis during pregnancy but more research is needed on the best dosage and duration of treatment.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Antibiotics for gonorrhoea in pregnancy | Cochrane
Pregnant women with gonorrhoea who take penicillin, spectinomycin or ceftriaxone are much less likely to show signs of infection.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Penicillamine for treating rheumatoid arthritis | Cochrane
Penicillamine is a penicillin derived compound. Studies showed that this could be used to treat rheumatoid arthritis originally in 1950. It was frequently used in the past, but its use has declined with the increasing use of other disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), such as methotrexate. The purpose of this summary was to find out if penicillamine is helpful in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Antibiotics for the treatment of leptospirosis | Cochrane
Leptospirosis is a common disease both in the developed and developing world. It is caused by a bacteria spread by the urine of animals. People travelling, agricultural field workers, hunters, homeless, and others with close animal contact are groups that, in particular, can get leptospirosis. Like many common infections, most people infected with this disease do not feel sick. When people do feel sick, in some instances up to 1 out of every 10 people have died. Whether or not antibiotics should be used, and if used which antibiotic should be used have been matters for debate for many years. This review identified and assessed seven clinical trials that tested antibiotics in patients sick with leptospirosis. Four of these trials compared intravenous penicillin to a placebo. Three of the trials looked at differences between different antibiotics. All trials had high risk of systematic errors (bias) and of random errors (play of chance). When looked at together, these trials do not answer the basic questions about whether or not antibiotics should be used. Part of the reason for this is that there is a wide range of severity among people ill with the disease. Additional randomised clinical trials are needed. Nonetheless, these trials suggest that antibiotics administered to patients who are sick with leptospirosis may make patients feel better two days earlier than they otherwise would have improved. However, it is also possible that when patients are severely ill, penicillin therapy might increase the risk of death or dialysis in comparison to those who receive no antibiotics. Other antibiotics have not been tested in this way. Despite the lack of evidence, if a clinician chooses to treat leptospirosis with an antibiotic, there does not seem to be any difference between the appropriate use of intravenous penicillin, intravenous cephalosporin, doxycyline, or azithromycin. But, for this they have not been tested to the same extent as intravenous penicillin.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Regular antibiotics for preventing pneumococcal infection in young children with sickle cell disease | Cochrane
People with sickle cell disease (SCD) are especially prone to respiratory infections and blood poisoning. These infections are often caused by pneumococcal bacteria. Infections occur partly due to the spleen not working correctly, but also because damaged tissue and bone resulting from SCD can harbour bacteria. The highest risk of infection occurs in children under three years old, but the usual pneumococcal vaccines are of limited use in these patients. Therefore regular antibiotics are needed to prevent infection. As risk of infection decreases with age, there might be a time when preventative antibiotic treatment can be halted. Three trials with over 800 children are included in the review. All three trials showed a reduced rate of infection in children with sickle cell disease receiving penicillin preventatively. Two trials looked at whether treatment was effective. The third trial followed on from one of the early trials and looked at when it was safe to stop treatment. Adverse drug effects were rare and minor. However, there were problems with children keeping to the treatment schedule and with the development of antibiotic resistance. We conclude that penicillin given preventatively reduces the rate of pneumococcal infections in children with sickle cell disease under five years old. The risk of infection in older children is lower, and the follow-on trial did not show a significant increase in risk when regular penicillin was halted at five years old. Further research should look at how common and how clinically important resistant bacteria are.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Antimicrobial drugs for treating methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonization | Cochrane
Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterium that can cause serious infections. Methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) refers to strains of S. aureus that are resistant to many antibiotics including the penicillins. Hospital infection control staff want to limit the spread of MRSA for several reasons and one of the ways of doing this is to use either topical or oral antimicrobial drugs in an attempt to eradicate MRSA from individuals who are colonized. However there is insufficient evidence to support the use of topical or oral antimicrobial therapy for eradicating nasal or extra-nasal MRSA. No one type of treatment either topical or oral or a combinations of both showed a superior effect. Potentially serious adverse events and development of antimicrobial resistance can result from therapy.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Testing newborn babies for sickle cell diseases | Cochrane
Sickle cell diseases are inherited and affect mainly people of African origin. The red blood cells are abnormally (sickle) shaped, which can lead to life-threatening complications. They are most likely to be fatal in the first few years of life since affected children are at higher risk of serious infections. Regular antibiotics and immunisations reduce the risk of infections, and if sickle status is known, can be started early. Screening babies allows early diagnosis and therefore early treatment. Screening may also have disadvantages. This review aims to assess whether screening compared to diagnosis from symptoms leads to less morbidity and mortality. The authors were not able to find trials that assessed the benefits and harms of screening. There is evidence that starting treatment early is of benefit. Early treatment is made possible by screening in the neonatal period. There are some reports in non-trial literature which suggest that newborn screening is appropriate based on currently available evidence. Healthcare providers must assess whether these reports are relevant to their practice and situation when deciding whether to screen for SCD in the neonatal period. Practice recommendations could be made from the results of a prospective randomised controlled trial. Such a trial may be thought to be unethical given the proven benefit of early preventative treatment of children with penicillin. There are no trials included in the review and we have not identified any relevant trials up to July 2008. We therefore do not plan to update this review until new trials are published.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
