Brodimoprim versus amoxicillin in the treatment of acute sinusitis

A new dihydrofolate inhibitor, brodimoprim, was compared with amoxicillin in the treatment of acute sinusitis in a general practice controlled study. Eighty adult outpatients with acute sinusitis were randomly assigned to receive 200 mg of brodimoprim once daily or 750 mg of amoxicillin thrice daily for seven to 10 days. The mean duration of treatment was 9.2 days in the brodimoprim group and 9.1 days in the amoxicillin group. In most patients the symptoms of sinusitis had disappeared by day 5 of treatment. The reduction in symptom scores was more marked in the brodimoprim-treated patients than in the amoxicillin-treated patients. Bacteriologic examinations after treatment were performed in 20 patients of each treatment group. At completion of treatment, the causative pathogen had been eradicated in 14 of 20 patients treated with brodimoprim and in 12 of 20 patients treated with amoxicillin. Treatment side effects were reported by two brodimoprim-treated patients (skin reactions) and by six amoxicillin-treated patients (gastrointestinal distrubances or skin reactions). The results indicate that brodimoprim is safe and effective in the treatment of acute sinusitis in adults.