ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF FK-037, A NEW BROAD-SPECTRUM CEPHALOSPORIN - INTERNATIONAL IN-VITRO COMPARISON WITH CEFEPIME AND CEFTAZIDIME

The in vitro activity of FK-037, a new parenteral 7-aminothiazolyl-methoxyimino cephalosporin, was compared with cefepime and ceftazidime against 6094 aerobic isolates collected in six medical centers worldwide. FK-037 demonstrated potent activity against the Enterobacteriaceae family except for some Enterobacter spp., Providencia spp., and Serratia liquefaciens (MIC(90)s, greater than or equal to 16 mu g/ml). Against nonenteric Gram-negative bacilli, all compounds tested showed similar, but more limited activity. The FK-037 MIC(50)s for Pseudomonas spp. and P. aeruginosa were 2 and 4 mu g/ml, respectively. The least susceptible organisms were Xanthomonas maltophilia, enterococci, and Bacillus spp. (MIC(50)s, > 16 mu g/ml), followed by Flavobacterium spp., other nonenterics, and oxacillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MIC(50)s, 16 mu g/ml). Good FK-037 activity was observed against oxacillin-susceptible staphylococci as well as against beta-hemolytic and viridans-group streptococci (MIC(90) range, less than or equal to 0.12 to 2 mu g/ml). While FK-037 was slightly more active than cefepime against Cram-positive organisms, enteric bacilli were most susceptible to cefepime. Overall, the antibacterial spectrum of both FK-037 and cefepime was superior to ceftazidime. -