Abstract
Peritonsillar abscess, although common in Japan, as yet has no treatment guidelines. Current treatment consists of abscess drainage and antibiotic administration. Despite guidelines in other countries recommending clindamycin or augmented penicillins, Japanese practice still often uses beta lactum drugs with or without clindamycin. We evaluated inpatient peritonsillar abscess management by intravenous clindamycin injection following needle aspiration. Of 54 such subjects treated between 2006 and 2009, 46 underwent intravenous aintibiotic administration following needle aspiration. Antibiotics used were clindamycin, sulbactam/cefoperazon, cefepime, and carbapenems. We compared clinical drug efficacy to hospitalization length, posttherapeutic pain duration and days until normal meal resumption. Clinical outcome showed no statistically significant difference among the four drug groups. We concluded that post needle aspitaion clindamycin treatment is as effective as and cheaper than alternatives. Narrow-spectrum antibiotics, such as clindamycin, also help prevent pathogen resistance.
