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Polymyxin B (Polymyxin b Sulfate) - Summary

 
 



WARNING

CAUTION: WHEN THIS DRUG IS GIVEN INTRAMUSCULARLY AND/OR INTRATHECALLY, IT SHOULD BE GIVEN ONLY TO HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS, SO AS TO PROVIDE CONSTANT SUPERVISION BY A PHYSICIAN.

RENAL FUNCTION SHOULD BE CAREFULLY DETERMINED AND PATIENTS WITH RENAL DAMAGE AND NITROGEN RETENTION SHOULD HAVE REDUCED DOSAGE. PATIENTS WITH NEPHROTOXICITY DUE TO POLYMYXIN B SULFATE USUALLY SHOW ALBUMINURIA, CELLULAR CASTS, AND AZOTEMIA. DIMINISHING URINE OUTPUT AND A RISING BUN ARE INDICATIONS FOR DISCONTINUING THERAPY WITH THIS DRUG.

NEUROTOXIC REACTIONS MAY BE MANIFESTED BY IRRITABILITY, WEAKNESS, DROWSINESS, ATAXIA, PERIORAL PARESTHESIA, NUMBNESS OF THE EXTREMITIES, AND BLURRING OF VISION. THESE ARE USUALLY ASSOCIATED WITH HIGH SERUM LEVELS FOUND IN PATIENTS WITH IMPAIRED RENAL FUNCTION AND/OR NEPHROTOXICITY.

THE CONCURRENT OR SEQUENTIAL USE OF OTHER NEUROTOXIC AND/OR NEPHROTOXIC DRUGS WITH POLYMYXIN B SULFATE, PARTICULARLY BACITRACIN, STREPTOMYCIN, NEOMYCIN, KANAMYCIN, GENTAMICIN, TOBRAMYCIN, AMIKACIN, CEPHALORIDINE, PAROMOMYCIN, VIOMYCIN, AND COLISTIN SHOULD BE AVOIDED.

THE NEUROTOXICITY OF POLYMYXIN B SULFATE CAN RESULT IN RESPIRATORY PARALYSIS FROM NEUROMUSCULAR BLOCKADE, ESPECIALLY WHEN THE DRUG IS GIVEN SOON AFTER ANESTHESIA AND/OR MUSCLE RELAXANTS.

USAGE IN PREGNANCY: THE SAFETY OF THIS DRUG IN HUMAN PREGNANCY HAS NOT BEEN ESTABLISHED.

 

POLYMYXIN B SUMMARY

Polymyxin B for Injection, USP is one of a group of basic polypeptide antibiotics derived from B polymyxa (B aerosporous). Polymyxin B sulfate is the sulfate salt of Polymyxins B1 and B2, which are produced by the growth of Bacillus polymyxa (Prazmowski) Migula (Fam. Bacillacea).

Acute Infections Caused by Susceptible Strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Polymyxin B sulfate is a drug of choice in the treatment of infections of the urinary tract, meninges, and bloodstream caused by susceptible strains of Ps. aeruginosa. It may also be used topically and subconjunctivally in the treatment of infections of the eye caused by susceptible strains of Ps. aeruginosa.

It may be indicated in serious infections caused by susceptible strains of the following organisms, when less potentially toxic drugs are ineffective or contraindicated:

H influenzae, specifically meningeal infections.

Escherichia coli, specifically urinary tract infections.

Aerobacter aerogenes, specifically bacteremia.

Klebsiella pneumoniae, specifically bacteremia.

NOTE: IN MENINGEAL INFECTIONS, POLYMYXIN B SULFATE SHOULD BE ADMINISTERED ONLY BY THE INTRATHECAL ROUTE.

To reduce the development of drug-resistant bacteria and maintain the effectiveness of polymyxin B and other antibacterial drugs, polymyxin B should be used only to treat or prevent infections that are proven or strongly suspected to be caused by susceptible bacteria. When culture and susceptibility information are available, they should be considered in selecting or modifying antibacterial therapy. In the absence of such data, local epidemiology and susceptibility patterns may contribute to the empiric selection of therapy.


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NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

Published Studies Related to Polymyxin B

Evaluation of the anti-endotoxin effects of polymyxin B in a feline model of endotoxemia. [2010.04]
Directed, effective therapies for feline sepsis are needed to reduce the high morbidity and mortality associated with this disease. We investigated the anti-endotoxin effects of polymyxin B (PMB) in a blinded, placebo controlled fashion, both ex vivo in a feline whole blood culture system and in vivo, using a low-dose endotoxin infusion in cats...

Polymyxin-B hemoperfusion and endotoxin removal: lessons from a review of the literature. [2010]
Sepsis involves a complex interaction between bacterial toxins and the host immune system...

Early use of polymyxin B hemoperfusion in abdominal septic shock: the EUPHAS randomized controlled trial. [2009.06.17]
CONTEXT: Polymyxin B fiber column is a medical device designed to reduce blood endotoxin levels in sepsis. Gram-negative-induced abdominal sepsis is likely associated with high circulating endotoxin. Reducing circulating endotoxin levels with polymyxin B hemoperfusion could potentially improve patient clinical outcomes. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether polymyxin B hemoperfusion added to conventional medical therapy improves clinical outcomes (mean arterial pressure [MAP], vasopressor requirement, oxygenation, organ dysfunction) and mortality compared with conventional therapy alone... CONCLUSION: In this preliminary study, polymyxin B hemoperfusion added to conventional therapy significantly improved hemodynamics and organ dysfunction and reduced 28-day mortality in a targeted population with severe sepsis and/or septic shock from intra-abdominal gram-negative infections. TRIAL REGISTRATION: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00629382.

A multicenter comparison of polymyxin B sulfate/trimethoprim ophthalmic solution and moxifloxacin in the speed of clinical efficacy for the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis. [2008.11]
PURPOSE: To compare the speed of clinical efficacy for two currently available topical antibiotics: polymyxin B sulfate/trimethoprim (polymyxin/trimethoprim) and 0.5% moxifloxacin ophthalmic solution... CONCLUSION: Moxifloxacin 0.5% administered three times daily is safe and cures bacterial conjunctivitis more effectively and significantly faster than polymyxin/trimethoprim dosed four times daily. The majority of patients were cured and symptom-free by 48 hours. Therefore, moxifloxacin is cost-effective and significantly more efficacious than polymyxin/trimethoprim in the speed by which it reduces the symptoms and disease transmission.

A comparison of ciprofloxacin/dexamethasone with neomycin/polymyxin/hydrocortisone for otitis externa pain. [2007.05]
Ciprofloxacin 0.3%/dexamethasone 0.1% (CIP/DEX) and neomycin 0.35%(polymyxin B 10,000 IU/mL/hydrocortisone 1.0% (NPH) were compared for relief of pain in patients with acute otitis externa. Patients received 7 d of treatment with CIP/DEX twice daily or NPH 3 times daily... Overall, these results support greater pain relief attained over the first 3 d in patients with acute otitis externa treated with CIP/DEX compared with NPH and a rapid reduction in severe pain after initiation of treatment.

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Clinical Trials Related to Polymyxin B

Efficacy of Polymyxin B Against Infections Caused by Extensively Drug-resistant (XDR) Gram-Negative Bacteria [Recruiting]
The objective of the study is to evaluate the efficacy of Polymyxin B for treatment Gram negative bacterial infection. The hypothesis of study is Polymyxin B would be the new antibacterial agents for Thai Gram negative infected patients in case of desirable outcomes and minimal side effects.

The Effects of Polymyxin-B Protects on Sepsis Induced Kidney Dysfunction: a Randomized Clinical Trial [Completed]
Aim of the study is to verify whether Polymyxin-B hemoperfusion protects from renal dysfunction in patients with severe sepsis from gram negative infection.

Impact of Early Peri-operative Use of Polymyxin-B Hemoperfusion in Septic Patients Undergoing Emergent Abdominal Surgery [Recruiting]
Septic shock of intra-abdominal origin is likely due to Gram-negative bacteria or mixed pathogens and associated with high levels of endotoxin. The injury to the endothelium results in an increase of endothelial permeability, interstitial edema and release of nitric oxide (NO) that is a very potent vasodilatator. [6] Polymyxins obtained from the Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus polymyxa are antibiotics known for their ability to bind LPS in the outer membrane of the Gram-negative bacterial cell wall as well as free endotoxins with high affinity. Polymyxin-B has been shown to block the activation of cells by a wide variety of LPS. Studies converged to show an improvement in the treatment of septic shock by removing circulating endotoxin. Starting Polymyxin-B hemoperfusion during the operative time is to block the initiation of various deleterious biological cascades induced by endotoxemia such as systemic inflammation, disseminated coagulation disorders, and shock, leading to organ dysfunction and death.

Randomized-controlled Trial (RCT) on Combination Antibiotic for Infections Caused by Gram-negative Bacteria [Not yet recruiting]
Background and rationale: Antimicrobial resistance is a global public health threat. An increasing number of Gram-negative bacteria isolates worldwide are resistant to virtually all antibiotics including carbapenems. Although polymyxins are the current gold standard antibiotic for

treatment of severe extensively drug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (XDR-GNB - defined in

Appendix I) infections, resistance development on therapy and treatment failures are common. Combination antibiotics therapy have better in vitro efficacy, but have not been formally tested in a prospective trial. We will conduct a Phase IIB, prospective, open-label, randomized-controlled trial in 4 major Singaporean hospitals, with balanced treatment assignments achieved by permuted block randomization, stratified by hospital. There will be 75 subjects per arm, with the subjects in the comparator arm receiving standard-dose polymyxin B while the intervention arm will receive a second antibiotic, doripenem, with polymyxin B against the bacterial isolate in question. Subjects with ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) will additionally receive nebulized colistin. The primary outcome is 30-day mortality while secondary outcomes include microbiological clearance, time to defervescence, and toxicity of therapy, presence of secondary infections due to new multi-drug resistant bacteria and length of ICU stay. Plasma drug levels will be measured by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Hypothesis: The underlying primary hypothesis is that combination antibiotic therapy (IV polymyxin B + IV doripenem) is superior to mono-antibiotics therapy (IV polymyxin B) in reducing 30-day mortality from XDR-GNB infections.

The Pilot Study of the Efficacy of Polymyxin-B Hemoperfusion in Critically Ill Patients With Severe Sepsis [Recruiting]
This research project is a study to immunology changes in critically ill patients with severe sepsis by using Endotoxin Activity Assay (EAA) combined with Polymyxin-B Hemoperfusion.

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PATIENT REVIEWS / RATINGS / COMMENTS

Based on a total of 1 ratings/reviews, Polymyxin B has an overall score of 10. The effectiveness score is 8 and the side effect score is 10. The scores are on ten point scale: 10 - best, 1 - worst.
 

Polymyxin B review by 35 year old female patient

  Rating
Overall rating:  
Effectiveness:   Considerably Effective
Side effects:   No Side Effects
  
Treatment Info
Condition / reason:   conjunctivitis
Dosage & duration:   2 drops (dosage frequency: 3 times daily) for the period of 7 days
Other conditions:   none
Other drugs taken:   none
  
Reported Results
Benefits:   It relieved symptoms of conjuctivitis including iching, dryness, soreness, buildup of mucus and sensitivity to light. Symptoms seem to clear up quickly and render the patient non infectious after 24 hours of treatment. It can be given to pregnant women with no adverse effects to the unborn child
Side effects:   There did not seem to be any side effects to the use of the drug
Comments:   The drug is a liquid administered in an eye drop form. It is self delivered into the eye. 2 drops are given in the affected eye up to 3 to 4 times daily for a total of 7 to 10 days.

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Page last updated: 2010-10-05

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