Antibiotic administration options

How rapidly a drug can be given is not clear in most instances, and there has been little incentive to test the limits until now. The experiences in other countries are useful and valuable reference points, indicating that many antibiotics can be given more rapidly than they now are. With increasing cost constraints, the more rapid rates should be considered. There should even be consideration of intramuscular administration, although this provides a challenge in other aspects of medicine, such as reimbursement: in some situations, hospitalization costs may be justified on the basis of need for intravenous therapy when the medication could actually be given as safely intramuscularly.