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‘You Look Like a 240 mg’: Gentamicin Dosing at a Sydney Hospital
Author(s) -
Johnston Claire F,
Carroll Peter R,
Matthews Slade T,
Mitchell Sarah J,
Hilmer Sarah N
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of pharmacy practice and research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.222
H-Index - 22
eISSN - 2055-2335
pISSN - 1445-937X
DOI - 10.1002/j.2055-2335.2011.tb00103.x
Subject(s) - gentamicin , medicine , dosing , aminoglycoside , antibiotics , pediatrics , microbiology and biotechnology , biology
Background Gentamicin, an aminoglycoside antibiotic, is used to treat gram‐negative bacterial infections. In the current Therapeutic Guidelines: Antibiotic , the recommendations for gentamicin have changed, i.e. the initial dose for empirical treatment, subsequent dose calculations and maximum duration of therapy. Aim To investigate the pattern of gentamicin utilisation and adherence to local gentamicin dosing guidelines. Method A cross‐sectional audit was conducted of available medication charts for inpatients (n = 51) administered gentamicin at a Sydney hospital over a 2 month period. For comparison, patients were stratified according to age into younger (18 to 59 years) or older (≥60 years) groups. Results Of the 51 patients evaluated, only 11 (8 younger, 3 older) had their weight recorded and they received significantly lower gentamicin doses than the recommended dose based on their age and weight. 11 patients received multiple doses of gentamicin with an average of 2.6 (range 2 to 4) days of therapy. The most common dose was gentamicin 240 mg. Conclusion There was significant under‐dosing of gentamicin in patients of all ages who had their weight recorded. Future studies are needed to investigate the impact of gentamicin underdosing on clinical outcomes.