Prophylactic co-trimoxazole versus norfloxacin in neutropenic children--perspective randomized study.

Co-trimoxazole or norfloxacin were randomly administered to 44 granulocytopenic children with malignancies in order to prevent bacterial infections. Although more patients in the co-trimoxazole group had febrile episodes (p less than 0.01), the mean of febrile days and the mean of days with systemic antibiotics did not differ significantly in the two groups. Five patients in the co-trimoxazole group had a microbiologically documented infection (four with septicemia) due to Escherichia coli (n = 2), Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus sp. There were four septicemic episodes in the norfloxacin group due to P. aeruginosa, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus mitis and Streptococcus faecalis. Compliance was good during administration of both drugs. No signs or symptoms of arthropathy were seen in the norfloxacin group. The number of gram-negative bacilli resistant to co-trimoxazole isolated from stools significantly increased during prophylaxis with co-trimoxazole (p less than 0.001). Norfloxacin did not select resistant strains and was very active in eradicating gram-negative bacilli from stools (27.5% of positive cultures).