Daily dosing of gentamicin using ideal body weight for the treatment of intrapartum chorioamnionitis: a pilot study

Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to determine whether daily dosing of gentamicin using ideal body weight in the treatment of chorioamnionitis is effective.

Materials and methods: We conducted a prospective observational study and followed all women receiving treatment for chorioamnionitis which included gentamicin daily dosing calculated using 5 mg/kg ideal body weight. Patients were excluded if pathological analysis of placenta did not confirm chorioamnionitis. Our primary outcome was resolution of infection following delivery without the development of maternal endometritis and/or neonatal sepsis. Ninety-five percent confidence intervals for proportions were calculated using exact binomial tests. These patients were retrospectively compared to patients who received treatment for chorioamnionitis which included traditional gentamicin every 8 h.

Results: The study included 160 patients. Of the patients receiving daily dosing (n = 80) compared to traditional dosing (n = 80), 96% (95% CI 95.7–97.6%) achieved the primary outcome versus 91% (88.9–93.1%), 2.5% (95% CI 1.2–3.8%) developed endometritis versus 6.3% (4.2–8.4%), 1.3% (95% CI 0.4–2.2%) delivered neonates with sepsis versus 2.5% (1.2–3.8%), and 39% required cesarean delivery (95% CI 46.2–53.8) versus 37% (33.2–40.8%).

Conclusion: Daily dosing of gentamicin using ideal body weight is effective in successful treatment of chorioamnionitis without development endometritis and/or neonatal sepsis across different ethnicities.

Keywords:

• Chorioamnionitis
• gentamicin dosing
• atepartum infection
• pregnancy

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.