Ceftazidime--a new extended-spectrum cephalosporin

65 patients with serious infections, including 25 with septicaemia, were treated with ceftazidime, a new extended-spectrum cephalosporin. 80% of the infection were cured by the antibiotic. 11 of 12 infected patients who had malignant disease or were otherwise immunocompromised responded satisfactorily to ceftazidime; 7 of these 12 had infections caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The serum half-life of ceftazidime was 1.9 h in a patient with normal renal function. After a 1 g intravenous dose the antibiotic was present in pus, sputum, and bile in therapeutic concentrations. The antibiotics should prove a useful and non-toxic alternative to the aminoglycosides.