Penetration of Enoxacin into Middle Ear Effusion

Abstract

An oral dose of 400 mg enoxacin was given to each of 19 patients with long-standing secretory otitis media (SOM). A total of 27 samples of middle ear effusion (MEE) and blood were collected at different intervals during a 6-h period after administration of the drug. The concentration of enoxacin in MEE and serum was determined by a microbiological agar-well diffusion method. Enoxacin was found to penetrate rapidly into MEE but was eliminated slowly. The concentration in MEE was about the same at one hour as at 6 h (median value 0.6 mg/1) with a slight peak at 4 h (median value 0.9 mg/1). The peak in blood occurred after one hour (median value 1.8 mg/1), followed by a slow decrease in the concentration during the 6 h studied. The concentration of enoxacin in MEE exceeded the MICs of some (but not all) pathogens usually responsible for infections in chronic otitis media.

Key Words:

• 4-quinolone
• SOM-model
• antibiotic concentration
• Gram-negative organisms
• chronic otitis media