[Method of adjusting the netilmicin dosage in neonatal intensive care]

We tried to adapt the dose of netilmicin in an intensive care unit on 41 newborns, under 8 days of age. Individual pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated after the first intramuscular dose administration and the initial dose (3 mg/kg/twice a day) was modified in 17 cases. Methodologic problems but mainly great variations in physiology and pathology explain the difficulties in predicting the serum concentration (peak and valley) on the 7th day. A decrease in the daily dose for the preterm infant, compared to the one used in full-term infant, and a drug concentration monitoring are advised.