Penicillin Therapy in Icteric Leptospirosis

Charles N. Edwards Department of Medicine, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of the West Indies, and the MRC/Barbados Government Leptospira Laboratory, St. Michael, Barbados

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George D. Nicholson Department of Medicine, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of the West Indies, and the MRC/Barbados Government Leptospira Laboratory, St. Michael, Barbados

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Trevor A. Hassell Department of Medicine, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of the West Indies, and the MRC/Barbados Government Leptospira Laboratory, St. Michael, Barbados

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Christopher O. R. Everard Department of Medicine, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of the West Indies, and the MRC/Barbados Government Leptospira Laboratory, St. Michael, Barbados

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Joy Callender Department of Medicine, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of the West Indies, and the MRC/Barbados Government Leptospira Laboratory, St. Michael, Barbados

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DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.1988.39.388
Volume/Issue:
Volume 39: Issue 4
Page(s):
388–390
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A prospective, controlled randomized study of penicillin therapy in icteric human leptospirosis was carried out between 1 October 1983 and 31 December 1986. Thirty-eight patients received intravenous crystalline penicillin for 5 days, while 41 assigned to a control group received intravenous fluids only. A comparison of the results of laboratory tests made on the day of admission revealed no significant differences between the 2 groups. There was no significant difference in time for defervescence, return of biochemical parameters to normal, incidence of iritis, or mortality in the 2 groups. Three patients (7.3%) in the control group and 1 patient (2.6%) in the treatment group died. The overall mortality rate was 5.9%. Leptospira were recovered from urine cultures in 6 control patients but from none of the treated patients' post-treatment cultures. We conclude that penicillin has little effect on clinical outcome in icteric leptospirosis.
Copyright:
Copyright © 1988 by The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 1988
Published Online:
Oct 1988
Cover The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Print ISSN:
0002-9637
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