Activities of faropenem, an oral beta-lactam, against recent U.S. isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, and Moraxella catarrhalis.

The in vitro activities of faropenem and other antimicrobial agents were determined against 4,725 Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates, 2,614 Haemophilus influenzae isolates, and 1,193 Moraxella catarrhalis isolates collected from 273 U.S. laboratories during 1999. Faropenem MICs at which 90% of isolates are inhibited were 0.008, 0.25, and 1 microg/ml for penicillin-susceptible, -intermediate, and -resistant S. pneumoniae strains, respectively; 0.5 and 1 microg/ml for beta-lactamase-positive and -negative H. influenzae strains, respectively; and 0.12 and 0.5 microg/ml for beta-lactamase-negative and -positive M. catarrhalis strains, respectively. Faropenem holds promise as an oral therapy for community-acquired respiratory tract infections.