Giving aminoglycoside antibiotics intravenously once daily compared to giving them several times per day in people with cystic fibrosis

Cystic fibrosis is a serious genetic disorder which affects the lungs and the exocrine glands (sweat glands and others). Most people with cystic fibrosis develop persistent lung infections and they may receive frequent courses of intravenous antibiotics. Once-a-day doses reduce the cost and the time involved in giving the antibiotics, compared to several dose per day. This review includes four trials with a total of 328 people. All trials compared once-a-day dosing with three times-a-day dosing. The review found that giving the antibiotics once per day was just as good at treating lung infections in people with cystic fibrosis as the alternative treatment. Results suggest once daily treatment is less toxic to the kidneys in children, but may not be in adults. There were no differences between treatments for other outcomes. While once-daily treatment can be just as effective and more convenient than three-times daily treatment, we recommend further studies to look at the long-term safety of this treatment regimen.