Antibiotics and Antibiotic Resistance

Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of Antimicrobial Drugs

The pharmacodynamics of an antimicrobial drug relates its pharmacokinetics to the time course of the antimicrobial effects at the site of the infection. Knowledge of the drug's antimicrobial pharmacodynamics effects provides a more rational basis for determination of optimal dosing regimens in terms of the dose and the dosing interval than do the minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) and minimal bactericidal concentrations (MBCs) determined in vitro. This session mainly focus on pharmacokinetics, antimicrobial pharmacodynamics, the effect of pharmacodynamics on the emergence of resistant bacterial subpopulations, and the development of pharmacodynamics breakpoints for use in the design of trials of these drugs and in the treatment of infected patients.