Anti-Bacterial Medications

Penicillins:  

• Amoxicillin, Ampicillin, Penicillin are used to treat mainly gram positive and some gram negative bacteria.  i.e.  Tonsillitis, pharyngitis, bronchitis, pneumonia, salmonella, gonorrhea, chlamydia, upper respiratory tract infections

Macrolides:

• Erythromycins, Zithromax, Biaxin are used to treat many of the same as Penicillins as well as pertussis, diphtheria and legionnaires disease

Sulfa drugs:

• Sulfatrim, Bactrim  are used to treat UTIs, upper respiratory infections, pneumonia and otitis media

Cephalosporins:

• Keflex, Ancef, Ceclor are used to treat gram positive and negative bacteria. i.e. UTI, respiratory, gonorrhea, sinus infections, e-coli

Tetracycline: 

• Doxycycline, Tetracycline, Minocycline are broad spectrum used to treat acne, bronchitis, syphilis, gonorrhea, and certain types of pneumonia, chlamydia, Lyme disease and rocky mountain spotted fever

Fluoroquinolones:

• Cipro, Levaquin are broad spectrums used to treat severe upper respiratory infections, STDs, anthrax, some of the severe hospital acquired infections

Aminoglycosides:

• Gentamicin, Tobramycin, and Amikacin must be given IV as they are not absorbed well orally.  They are used to treat endocarditis, cellulitis, bronchitis and meningitis

Glycopeptide:

• Vancomycin is used to treat penicillin resistant pneumonias and MRSA

Streptogramin:  

• Synercid is specifically designed to treat infections that vancomycin cannot treat

Mechanism of Action:

• Depending on the type of antibiotic, they kill or slow the growth of bacteria by disrupting the cell wall, interfere with the function of the cell membrane, inhibit the microbial DNA or disrupt the cell's metabolic function