Safety of Intravenous Infusion of Doripenem

Carbapenems remain a mainstay for the empirical treatment of serious nosocomial infection. Although the tolerance and safety profile of the carbapenems as a class is favorable, the primary safety concern is the potential for treatment-emergent seizures. In preclinical testing, doripenem, a new carbapenem antibiotic, showed negligible neurotoxic effects. The safety and tolerability of intravenous doripenem was evaluated in 1 phase 2 and in 6 phase 3 clinical trials conducted with patients with nosocomial pneumonia, including ventilator-associated pneumonia; complicated intra-abdominal infection; and complicated urinary tract infection. Safety data were available from 1817 patients who received doripenem and 1325 patients who received 1 of 4 active comparator drugs as part of this development program. Overall, intravenous doripenem was found to be safe and well tolerated, demonstrating a safety profile comparable to that of comparator agents and a limited propensity to induce seizures, including when administered via 1-h or 4-h infusion. j.