BMJ  2003;326:1111 (24 May), doi:10.1136/bmj.326.7399.1111

Paper

lactam monotherapy versus lactam-aminoglycoside combination therapy for fever with neutropenia: systematic review and meta-analysis

¹ Rabin Medical Centre, Beilinson Campus, Infectious Diseases Unit and Department of Medicine E, Petah-Tiqva 49100, Israel, ² Rabin Medical Centre, Beilinson Campus, Department of Medicine E, Internal Medicine E, Petah-Tiqva

Objective To compare the effectiveness of lactam monotherapy versus lactam-aminoglycoside combination therapy in the treatment of patients with fever and neutropenia.

Data sources Medline, Embase, Lilacs, the Cochrane Library, and conference proceedings to 2002. References of included studies and contact with authors. No restrictions on language, year of publication, or publication status.

Study selection All randomised trials of lactam monotherapy compared with lactam-minoglycoside combination therapy as empirical treatment for patients with fever and neutropenia.

Data selection Two reviewers independently applied selection criteria, performed quality assessment, and extracted data. An intention to treat approach was used. Relative risks were pooled with the random effect model.

Main outcome measure All cause fatality.

Results Forty seven trials with 7807 patients met inclusion criteria. Nine trials compared the same lactam. There was no significant difference in all cause fatality (relative risk 0.85, 95% confidence interval 0.72 to 1.02). For success of treatment there was a significant advantage with monotherapy (0.92, 0.85 to 0.99), though there was considerable heterogeneity among trials. There was no significant difference between monotherapy and combination treatment in trials that compared the same lactam, whereas there was major advantage with monotherapy in trials that compared different lactams (0.87, 0.80 to 0.93). Rates of superinfection were similar. Adverse events, including those associated with severe morbidity, were significantly more common in the combination treatment group. Detected flaws in methods did not affect results.

Conclusions For patients with fever and neutropenia there is no clinical advantage in treatment with lactam-aminoglycoside combination therapy. Broad spectrum lactams as monotherapy should be regarded as the standard of care for such patients.

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Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

The dangers of broad spectrum antibiotics

Stephanie J Dancer
bmj.com, 27 May 2003 [Full text]

Beta lactum monotherapy is not adequate to treat to all cases of febrile neutropenia

SATYA P YADAV, et al.
bmj.com, 29 May 2003 [Full text]

Reply to rapid responses

Mical Paul
bmj.com, 6 Jun 2003 [Full text]

Risk of aminoglycoside nephrotoxicity in neutropenic fever may be overestimated

RICHARD P COOKE, et al.
bmj.com, 18 Jun 2003 [Full text]

In case of septic shock, beta lactam monotherapy would be dangerous

Joseph C Watine
bmj.com, 24 Jun 2003 [Full text]

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