Ghasna Mohiuddin, S. Gillani, Anam Azhar
2020
Citations
0
Influential Citations
1
Citations
Quality indicators
Journal
Journal name not available for this finding
Abstract
Published by: OZZIE Publishers Abstract Objective: The aim of this clinical review was to have an in-depth knowledge of the antibiotics being used to treat lower respiratory tract infections which are most likely to occur in the pediatric population of different age groups. Methods: This study analyzed 43 articles which were studied and identified according to the research criteria. The required data has been searched using research gate, ncbi, Medscape, Mayo Clinic, WebMD. Results: The findings included different levels of effectiveness in the 5 generations of cephalosporin’s as some killed certain bacteria’s better than others and are relatively short acting with half-life of about 30-120 minutes when compared to penicillin. For example, first generation cephalosporin’s were quite active against gram positive bacteria when compared to gram negative bacteria however, the efficacy was reduced due to resistance. It was discussed regarding second generations that they are effective against both gram negative and gram-positive bacteria and are resistant to Blactamase more than the first generations, therefore have a high anti-bacterial activity. As far as the third and fourth generations were concerned, they were able to penetrate the blood-brain barrier and were frequently designed for bacterial meningitis which were caused by susceptible pathogens. Fifth generations have a similar mechanism of action as that of the 3 generations and can treat resistant staphylococcus aureus and streptococcus species which are resistant to penicillin antibiotics. On the other hand, Carbapenems (penetrates bacterial cell wall of micro-organisms and inhibits cell wall synthesis) and aminoglycosides (inhibits protein synthesis by binding to bacterial ribosomes and inducing misreading of the of the genetic code) are one of the most highly efficacious as they prevent severe and high risk bacterial infections although, rare incidents of toxicity and life threatening side effects have been reported when taken aminoglycosides. Conclusion: Penicillin is the safest to treat and prevent the lower respiratory tract infections in the pediatric population as they have minor side effects such as headache, nausea compared to other antibiotics.