Actinomycosis

Clindamycin has found use in the treatment of common infections caused by gram-positive cocci It is also efficacious in the treatment of anaerobic infections, including actinomycosis (38). Clindamycin has been shown to be active against strains of P/asmodiumin animals (66—68). 

The device is removed for the following reasons pelvic infection, endometritis, genital actinomycosis (a non contagious bacterial infection), intradable pelvic pain, pregnancy, endometrial or cervical malignancy, increase in length of the threads extending from the cervix or any other indication of partial expulsion. 

Dapsone (p. 280) has several therapeutic uses besides treatment of leprosy, it is used for prevention/prophylaxis of malaria, toxoplasmosis, and actinomycosis. 

Alternative therapy for the following infections when penicillin is contraindicated Uncomplicated gonorrhea due to Neisseria gonorrhoeae] syphilis due to Treponema pallidum, yaws due to T. pertenue] Listeria monocytogenes] anthrax due to Bacillus anthracis] Vincent s infection due to Fusobacterium fusiforme] actinomycosis due to Actinomyces sp. Clostridium sp. 

If it is decided to treat an upper RTI in general 5-7 days treatment suffices. In lower RTI generally 10-14 days are recommended. Two to three weeks of treatment is advised for Staphylococcus aureus, Legionella pneumophila. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pneumocystis jiroveci (formerly carinii) and severe aspiration-pneumonia. Tuberculosis, actinomycosis, nocardiosis, aspergillosis, melioidosis and anaerobic lung abscesses require many months of treatment. 

Unlabeled Uses Treatment of actinomycosis, babesiosis, erysipelas, malaria, otitis media, Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, sinusitis, toxoplasmosis... 

Miscellaneous infections caused by susceptible strains of bacteria causing psittacosis, cholera, melioidosis, leptospirosis, brucellosis, bartonellosis, plague, tularemia, Campylobacter fetus infection, rickettsial infections including typhus and Q fever, relapsing fever due to Borrelia recurrentis and actinomycosis in penicillin allergic patients. 

Lincomycin has found use in the treatment of diseases of the ear, throat, nose, respiratory tissue, skin and soft tissue, bone, joint, dental, and septicemic infections caused by staphylococci, pneumonococci, and streptococci (other than enterococci). It has also been used in the treatment of diphtheria and a variety of anaerobic infections, including actinomycosis. 

Diseases of ileal mucosa (Crohn s or Bechet s disease,TB, actinomycosis, lymphoma, ulcerative ileo-jejunitis [due to sprue], radiation enteritis, HIV enteropathy, Yersinia enteritis)... 

Warren NG Actinomycosis, nocardiosis, and actinomycetoma. Dermatol Clin 1996 14 85-95. 

Actinomycosis. The anaerobe Actinomyces israelii is sensitive to several drugs, but not metronidazole, and access is poor because of granulomatous fibrosis. High doses of benzylpenicillin or amoxicillin are given for several weeks the infections are often mixed with other anaerobic bacteria so metronidazole is often given in addition to ensure activity against all components of the mixture. Co-amoxiclav may be a convenient alternative. Surgery is likely to be needed. 

The abdominal form of the so-called ray-fungus disease (actinomycosis) is a non-contagious, mostly chronic infectious disease induced through the gram-positive, anaerobic rod-shaped bacterium Actinomyces israelii. It is a pseudomycosis. Under favourable conditions, this human saprophyte can cause enterocolitis. 

Hepatic actinomycosis infiltrating the diaphragm and right limg. Amer. I. Gastroenterol. 1996 91 2418 -2420... 

Sharma, M., Briski, L.E., Khatib, R. Hepatic actinomycosis an overview of salient features and outcome of therapy. Scand. J. Infect. Dis. 2002 34 386-391... 

Leeton J. Female genital actinomycosis and the intrauterine device. Med J Aust 1980 1(11) 518. 

Genital tract actinomycosis has come increasingly to the fore (33,34). In one study in Britain, the pelvic smears of nearly one-third of women using plastic devices were positive for Actinomyces-like organisms, compared with... 

Tetracyclines are the first broad-spectrum antibiotic used to impede the growth of gram-positive and -negative bacteria. Tetracyclines are prescribed for acne vulgaris, actinomycosis, anthrax, bronchitis, and urinary tract infections. Demeclocycline, a member of the tetracycline family, is also prescribed for syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone (SIADH). Demeclocycline inhibits water-induced reabsorption in the kidneys. 

Fungal diseases of the liver that have been reported to be accompanied by serum alkaline phosphatase elevation include histoplasmosis (S49), cryptococcosis (S35), and actinomycosis (Y2). Successful chemotherapy usually leads to a return of serum alkaline phosphatase to normal levels (Y2), although antifungal agents may be hepatotoxic and may themselves lead to hyperphosphatasemia (M12). 

Y2. Yamada, T., Sakai, A., Tonouchi, S., and Kawashima, K., Actinomycosis of the liver Report of a case with special reference to liver function tests. Am. J. Surg. 121, 341-345 (1971). 

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