[The penetration of cefpiramide into the skin]

To investigate the skin penetration of cefpiramide (CPM, SM-1652), a broad-spectrum and long acting cephem antibiotic, 1 g of CPM was administered by single bolus intravenous injection to patients under general anesthesia during operations for full-thickness skin grafting. The CPM levels in both the serum and the skin were determined by bioassay at specified time intervals, and the following results were obtained. 1. Peak CPM concentrations in the serum (mean: 292.78 micrograms/ml) were observed 10 minutes after administration, and declined very slowly thereafter. 2. Peak CPM concentrations in the skin (mean: 23.05 micrograms/g) were observed 2 hours after administration, and then also declined very slowly. 3. The ratio of skin to serum concentrations was 16% when the peak CPM concentrations in the skin were obtained (2 hours after the administration). These results show that effective CPM concentrations were maintained in the skin for a long period, indicating a good therapeutic action against skin infections.