Pharmacokinetics of antimicrobials in critically ill paediatric patients

Very little pharmacokinetic data for critically ill paediatric patients currently exists. It is highly likely that the same pharmacokinetic changes observed in critically ill adults will also occur in children leading to subtherapeutic concentrations that risk treatment failure and the emergence of resistant pathogens.

To date, little data is available to characterise antimicrobial pharmacokinetics in these patients, particularly for antimicrobials recommended by Australian guidelines, including piperacillin/tazobactam, cefotaxime and vancomycin.

This work is undertaken by the Clinical Microsampling Group.

Recent publications

1. Guerra Valero YC, Dorofaeff T, Coulthard MG, Sparkes L, Lipman J, Wallis SC, Roberts JA, Parker SL. Optimal dosing of cefotaxime and desacetylcefotaxime for critically ill paediatric patients. Can we use microsampling? Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy 2022; doi.org/10.1093/jac/dkac168
2. Dorofaeff T, Bandini RM, Lipman J, Ballot DE, Roberts JA, Parker SL. Uncertainty in antibiotic dosing in critically ill paediatric patients: can microsampling provide the answers? Clin Ther 2016; 38(9):1961-75.
3. Roberts, Jason A. (2018) Beta-Lactam Therapeutic Drug Monitoring in the Critically Ill Children: Big Solution for Infections in Small People?. Critical Care Medicine, 46 2: 335-337. doi:10.1097/CCM.0000000000002862