We report the efficacy of a single 2.0g dose of a novel azithromycin microsphere formulation as compared with that of levofloxacin 500mg/day in patients with postoperative exacerbation of chronic rhinosinusitis. Thirty patients who had undergone endoscopic sinus surgery were divided into two groups (azithromycin microspheres group, n=15; oral levofloxacin group, n=15).
The primary endpoint was the clinical efficacy on Day 14. The overall clinical efficacy of antibiotic treatment was 83.3% (25/30 subjects); when analyzed by the antibiotic, the efficacy rate was 86.7% (13/15 subjects) in the azithromycin microspheres group and 80% (12/15 subjects) in the levofloxacin group. The bacteriological response (eradication rate) rate on Day 14 was 71.4% (10/14 subjects) in the azithromycin group and 92.3% (12/13 subjects) in the levofloxacin group.
These results indicate that the microsphere formulation of azithromycin is effective for the treatment of postoperative exacerbation of chronic rhinosinusitis.