Clinical evaluation of the role of ceftaroline in the management of community acquired bacterial pneumonia

Abstract

Ceftaroline fosamil (ceftaroline) was recently approved for the treatment of community- acquired pneumonia (CAP) and complicated skin infections. This newly developed cephalosporin possesses a broad spectrum of activity against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. Most importantly, ceftaroline demonstrates potent in vitro antimicrobial activity against multi-drug resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae and methicillin-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus. In two Phase III, double-blinded, randomized, prospective trials (FOCUS 1 and FOCUS 2), ceftaroline was shown to be non-inferior to ceftriaxone for the treatment of CAP in hospitalized patients. Ceftaroline exhibits low resistance rates and a safety profile similar to that of other cephalosporins. In this review, we will evaluate the pharmacological characteristics, safety, antimicrobial properties, and efficacy of ceftaroline and its applications in the treatment of CAP.

Keywords:

• s. pneumoniae
• s. aureus
• cephalosporins
• pneumonia
• ceftaroline
• community acquired pneumonia

Disclosure

No conflicts of interest were reported by DM, JF, CW, KE, and AN. AA is a consultant and speaker for Forest Laboratories, Bayer Pharma, GlaxoSmithKline, Boehringer- Ingleheim, and Asta-Zeneca. MR participated in advisory boards for Ortho- McNeil-Janssen, Theravan, Forest Laboratories, Johnson and Johnson, and Novartis and has been a speaker for Covidien, BARD Inc, Johnson and Johnson (Ortho-McNeil-Janssen), and Pfizer as well as a consultant for Theravan and Pfizer (Wyeth). MR’s time is partially protected by award number K23HL096054 from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute or the National Institutes of Health. The funding agencies had no role in the preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Veterans Affairs, nor the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.