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Dept of Health

Answer

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what drugs are approved for use against methicillin sensitive staphylococcus aureus in hospitals; and if he will make a statement on their effectiveness. [197944] Miss Melanie Johnson: [holding answer 15 November 2004]: The prescribing information, which is laid out in the summary of product characteristics, for 150 licensed medicinal products states among the indications that the drug might be used to treat infections due to methicillin- susceptible "Staphylococcus aureus" (MSSA). These licensed medicinal products concern 21 different antibacterial agents. However, because the prescribing information for more recently approved antibacterial agents lists only clinical infection types as indications, for example, skin and soft tissue infections, there are in fact many others that are active against MSSA and which have been shown in clinical trials or can be predicted from in-vitro studies to be suitable for treatment. The choice of agent from among all the possible drugs depends on factors such as the patient, the infection, the hospital formulary, professional guidance documents, physician experience and, when available, the results of microbiological laboratory test results. The drug that is most commonly recommended, as in the British National Formulary, for treating methicillin- susceptible "Staphylococcus aureus" is flucloxacillin, which is a type of penicillin. Patients who cannot be given flucloxacillin for any reason are most usually treated with a macrolide, such as erythromycin. Information on the effectiveness of these drugs comes from clinical trials and mainly from long years of experience with their use.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

197944; 426 c1679-80W;426 c1682-3W

Session

2003-04

Subjects

Hospitals Drugs Disease control MSSA

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk