Penetration of aztreonam into human bronchial secretions

Nine intubated patients were given a single, 2-g intravenous dose of aztreonam over 5 min. Samples of serum and bronchial secretion were obtained 2, 4, and 8 h after administration and assayed for aztreonam content. The mean concentrations in bronchial secretion ranged from 1.9 to 5.2 micrograms/ml and tended to be highest at 4 h. The concentrations in bronchial secretion varied from patient to patient, but each patient had one or more bronchial secretion samples that contained at least 2.7 micrograms of drug per ml.